InuyashaThe Shikon War
by Spacewolf
Summary: The gang stumbles across some pretty wacky demons, a matchmaker, and the queen of birds are only two. Unfortunately, they also stumble across a new baddie. Such is the fate of the Guardians of the Shikon
1. Enter Rasha

I do not own any of the Inuyasha clan, but I do own a couple of the new chars, and I want it noted they are mine, or a friend's and if you want to use them you must ask my permission or Calum the angel's. She's my buddy and if you read her stuff you might notice we have the same new chars, that's because we came up with them together. Don't worry, we may have a common bad guy and common chars, but in our experience in our Yu-Gi-Oh fics and Legend of the Sitting Ducks story that we will go in totally different directions. Now that I've bored you all half to death. On with the main event! 

Inuyasha sniffed delicately and frowned.

"Something's not right," he muttered. "There's something out there." He sniffed again. There was a strange smell in the air, one that was distinctly a demony smell and wholly different from any demon he'd ever smelled before.

He cocked his head, focusing.

"What is that smell?"

"Inu-ya-sha!" 

He growled to himself. He'd been so intent on the strange smell in the distance he hadn't noticed Kagome's scent creeping up on him.

"Come on down here Inuyasha!" she ordered. "I've got noodles!"

"Ramen?" he asked excitedly. He was down the tree in three seconds flat, rummaging in her large back pack. "Sit boy!" she laughed.

He was thrown to the ground, but it wasn't as bad as some.

"Kagome!" he snapped crossly.

"Oops sorry!" she laughed. "I didn't mean it that way!"

He rubbed his back and looked up at her, growling. She pulled out a canister of ramen noodles and like some sort of magic, his pain went away.

"What were you so focused on?" she asked him. 

"There's a funny smell out there!" he replied, continuing to rummage through her bag, searching for a second canister. He ate the second one raw as she cooked the first one.

"What kind of smell?" she asked as she cooked the noodles.

"Funny," he replied around a mouthful of raw noodles.

She wrinkled her nose and sighed.

"Okay, what does funny smell like?" she asked.

"I don't know, kind of spicy and dry," he shrugged. "Kinda demony too!"

Kagome rolled her eyes.

"Was it a demon?" she asked.

"I dunno, maybe, maybe not," he replied, swallowing and then taking another mouthful. "It doesn't smell like a normal demon!"

"How does a normal demon smell?" she asked curiously, flopping back on the grass.

"Kind of like pines and flowers," Inuyasha replied. He paused. "Sort of like the land, plus a demon smell, then their own personal smell!"

"How do I smell?" asked Kagome, wondering what a demon's answer would be. 

"I dunno, different," he replied unemotionally.

Kagome huffed and rolled her eyes, staring up at the pale blue sky, speckled with white fluffy clouds.

"Different how?"

"What is this, twenty question?" he demanded. "I'm eating!"

"I know!" she looked at him sideways. "You've got noodles hanging out of your mouth!"

He slurped them up and wiped his mouth on his sleeve.

"So Kagome," he said leaning closer, crushing the ramen can in one hand. He leaned down over her, his hair falling to the side. He gave her a smile. "Have I told you how wonderful..."

"The other noodles are over there!" she said drily, pointing. 

He leapt away and snatched the second cup of noodles and downed those too.

"Can I have more?" he asked eagerly.

"Well I'll see if I brought more," she told him. She sat up and grabbed her bag. She tugged it onto her lap and began to look around when she heard a frightened scream.

Sango came running towards them, Kirara running at her heels. The young demon slayer stopped in front of them, her kimono looking rather askew.

"Miroku's gone!" she screamed wildly. "His room is empty and his bed's in disarray, it looks like he was kidnaped!"

"Kidnaped?" demanded Kagome. She jumped to her feet. "Come on Inuyasha, we have to examine the scene of the crime!"

"What about more noodles?" he wailed.

"No time for that now!" she scolded.

"That's not all!" wailed Sango as she held up cute little Kirara who had a note tied around her neck with a red ribbon. The note said: Somebody likes you!

"Somebody likes you?" asked Kagome frowning. "What does that mean?"

"I don't know!" replied Sango. "We've got to go! Now!"

"Right!"

She and Kagome took off. Inuyasha watched them go, blinking.

"Somebody likes Sango? He scratched his head. "Who?"

"Inuyasha!" screamed Kagome, looking over her shoulder.

With a groan he ran and caught up with them. He slowed to allow Kagome to climb onto his back as Kirara went big and Sango jumped onto her back.

The two demons made much better time carrying the humans then they would have running with them.

"Thank goodness, ye be here," said Kaede, standing in front of the sliding panel of Miroku's room. Inuyasha dumped Kagome off his back and threw the door open.

"That strange smell is here too!" he exclaimed. He dropped down and sniffed. He followed his nose around the room to the door. "Whatever it was, left here!"

He took off in the direction of the smell.

"Inuyasha!" screamed Kagome.

"Get a ride with Kirara!" he shouted back. Seconds later Kirara caught up with him, Kagome glared at him as Sango slipped out of her kimono, wearing her demon slayer outfit underneath.

Twice Inuyasha and Kirara paused to sniff the ground and decide which way whatever it was that had Miroku had run.

They were going deeper into the forest, deeper then they usually went.

"There!" said Kagome, pointing.

Ahead was Miroku. He was tied to a tree with a gag in his mouth. He looked frantic, he made mumbling sounds like he was trying to talk to them.

He had a note on his forehead.

Kagome and Sango dismounted Kirara as Inuyasha drew the Tetsusaiga to defend against anyone who might attack.

"Hey look!" said Sango. She pulled the note off Miroku's forehead. The others came over to see what it said. Miroku screamed at them through his gag, slamming his foot against the tree to get their attention.

"Somebody?" asked Inuyasha.

"It's written in the same hand writing as the note around Kirara's neck," mused Kagome. "It must be from the same person!"

Kagome pulled the gag out of Miroku's mouth.

"She's gonna eat me!" 

The usually placid voice of the lusty young monk was at least an octave higher then normal.

"Who?" asked Sango. She ducked behind the tree and began to untie his bonds.

"I don't know!" he whimpered. As soon as his arms were free he grabbed Inuyasha by the front of his shirt and shook him.

"She came into my room when it was dark. I couldn't see her. She said she needed some advise. She asked me if somebody really liked someone, but had trouble saying it then should that someone do something drastic to show that other someone how they feel?"

Inuyasha tried to puzzle that out.

"Is somebody the same person as someone?" he wondered.

"It made more sense when she asked me," Miroku snapped. "So I said yes, then she sat down on my mat and asked me if that somebody was really nervous if maybe someone shouldn't give them a little help. I said yes. She said thanks, she hit over the head with my walking stick and then the next thing I knew I was here! She was telling me to stay put because it would spoil everything if I went anywhere. While she was talking someone was tying me up. When my bonds were securely tied this face and hands floated in front of me, and then leered at me and then it was gone! Then she just walked off!"

The other three shared a look.

"Floating face with hands?" asked Sango unimpressed.

"Walked off?" asked Inuyasha in the same tone.

"Why did you let a strange woman into your room?" asked Kagome drily. She thought about it a moment. "Never mind, I know!"

"I thought she was talking about me and her, but she wasn't!"

"Or maybe she just really likes you and this is how she tells you," suggested Inuyasha.

Miroku made a face.

"That's not funny!" he snapped. 

Inuyasha rolled his eyes.

"Let's get back to the village," he said. "Miroku just wants attention!"

"I do not!" snapped the monk, sounding very offended. "Besides, how could I tie myself to a tree?"

"I dunno, maybe you got that badger to help you," shrugged Inuyasha. "The shapeshifter."

"That wasn't funny Miroku!" snapped Kagome, smacking him in the arm.

"We were really worried!" agreed Sango in annoyance. "Next time you want to play a stupid prank, play it on your own time!"

"But it really happened!" whined Miroku. "Kirara, you believe me don't you?" The large demonic beast turned its head aside as if to say 'humph!'

Kagome and Sango got on Kirara's back.

"Miroku, you can walk back!" said Kagome. "If you're going to play mean jokes and scare everybody then you can just think about that a while as you walk back! Next time we won't be so quick to come to your rescue!"

"But it wasn't me!" he whimpered as they loped off.

"The nerve of that guy!" huffed Kagome. "Scaring us like that!"

When they returned to the village, Kaede was waiting.

"Where be Miroku?" she asked frowning.

"He was playing a cruel joke so we made him walk home!" replied Kagome, jumping off Kirara's back. "He would have us believe some strange woman crept into his room and then he was tied up by a face and hands!" 

"Most peculiar. This is most unlike Miroku," mused Kaede. "Perhaps he had too much sake the night before!" 

Shippou came running up.

"Lady Kaede!" he cried. "There's a big worm demon attacking some villager! Out by the bone eater's well!"

"Not the well!" shrieked Kagome.

Sango grabbed her large boomerang and leapt onto Kirara's back, and the pair were off. With a groan Inuyasha followed with Kagome on his back and Shippou on his shoulder.

"You have legs," he reminded the little fox demon.

"But they're stubby and not as fast as yours!" whined the little fox. "Besides, you let Kagome ride your back!"

"Listen you-oo-oo-oo!" Inuyasha fell face first into the dirt road.

Kagome looked back at Kaede, only twenty feet away who had blank expression, with a slight eye twitch.

"Stumbling over thine own feet Inuyasha?" called the old wise woman. "Perhaps ye be not as fleet of foot as we once thought!"

"I'm not clumsy!" cried Inuyasha, jumping up, dumping Kagome and Shippou onto the road. He held up his fist towards the old woman. "If it wasn't for this stupid pothole!"

"Uh, Inuyasha," said Shippou sounding worried.

"Not now!" snapped Inuyasha. "Lots of wagons pass through here, maybe you should fix it so someone doesn't break a wheel!"

"Inuyasha," said Shippou more urgently.

"And another thing, how come whenever I do something wrong it's all 'maybe we were wrong and you aren't as good as we originally thought,' but when I do something good, I don't even get a thank you!"

"Inuyasha!" whined Shippou, tugging on the other demon's pants. Inuyasha stomped down on Shippou. Had Shippou been human he would have been badly hurt, but being demon he only had a bump on his head.

"How about a good job Inuyasha," continued Inuyasha, ranting on passionately. "Or a thank goodness you're here Inuyasha. Or we couldn't have done with without you, Inuyasha!"

Kagome looked to where Shippou was staring with horror.

"Inuyasha!" she said worriedly.

"And why don't you take this stupid necklace off?" shrieked Inuyasha, tugging on the beaded necklace around his neck. "All I ever hear is 'sit boy!'"

"Sit boy!"

"Ugh!" He slammed into the ground like an invisible foot had stepped on him. "See?" He looked up to see if Kaede had seen how terribly he was being treated.

"Inuyasha, look!" Kagome grabbed him by the back of the head and thrust his nose almost into the dirt.

The 'pothole' he'd tripped on was a foot print. A huge foot print, thirteen inches long, not including the less pronounced indentations that must have been cruelly curved claws. Three toes and a heel with a claw of its own.

"What could have made that?" he wondered. He sniffed. "It's that same smell!" he exclaimed.

"What does it mean?" Kagome asked.

"What smell, I didn't hear anything about a smell! How come no one told me about the smell!" whined Shippou. Inuyasha ground his face into the dirt right next to the indentation. 

"That smell!" he snapped.

"Kagome!" sobbed Shippou, jumping into her arms.

"Come on," she said getting to her feet. "We can check out the weird smell later, right now Sango needs our help!"

Kagome jumped onto his back, still holding Shippou in one arm and Inuyasha ran.

When they got to the clearing with the bone eater's well, villagers had formed a ring around it, with Sango battling the large green worm. Each end of the worm was red, making it impossible to decipher which end was its head.

"About time!" Sango snapped, catching her boomerang and then throwing it again as Kirara jumped out of the way.

Inuyasha pulled out the Tetsusaiga, which changed from rusty piece of junk to a magnificent weapon within seconds.

"Come on you butt ugly worm!" he taunted it. As the worm lunged at him he took one swipe with the mighty Tetsusaiga and slit the worm right down the middle.

Instead of falling on either side of him and writhing for a little while, it exploded in a shower of red goo.

Inuyasha stood, holding the sword above his head for a moment, blinking the red goo out of his eyelids. The entire clearing was covered in it. Sango, Kagome, the trees, the villagers, him, Shippou, and the well!

"Inuyasha!" whined Shippou. "Why'd you have to go and make that mess?"

"I didn't plan it!" he growled, sheathing the sword, only to find, to his complete horror the sheath was filled entirely with the sticky paste.

"Eww!" Kagome wrinkled her nose as he turned the scabbard upside down and a large pile of the goop plopped to the ground.

The only thing not covered in the thick red muck was Kirara, who had become small and ducked behind a bush just in time. The bush was covered, but she was fine.

"Let's get to the hot springs and wash our hair!" moaned Kagome.

"Yeah," agreed Sango.

"What about that foot print? And the smell?" demanded Inuyasha.

"You can check those out Inuyasha," Kagome said in disgust. "Shippou, Sango and I are going to wash off!"

"Oh goody! I get to come too?" demanded the fox demon, looking much happier.

"Sure," agreed Sango. "I'll even teach you how to do the backstroke!"

"Yippee!" cheered Shippou, he ran along behind them laughing happily as the three went off in the direction of the hot springs.

Inuyasha glared at the villagers and then turned to go.

Splat! 

He looked down at his foot, firmly planted in the thick red goo and felt his eye begin to twitch.

He made his way back to the village. Slime dripping from his hair into his face and from his clothes onto his feet and he was confident he had slime in every orifice of his body. As he walked he cleaned out of his ears. Getting a sizable dollop of goo from each.

"I'll never look at jam the same way again!" he grumbled.

Kaede was kneeling next to the large foot print, with Miroku who had finally gotten back.

"Inuyasha?" asked Miroku, spotting him first.

"The worm demon exploded when I killed him!" Inuyasha said tightly.

"Shouldn't you go wash off?" asked the monk, raising an eyebrow.

"What's the point, it got everywhere, even in the well!" he replied. He knelt next to the footprint and took a few practice sniffs. He became aware of stares. He looked over to find Kaede and Miroku staring at him with the same expression.

"What?" he demanded.

"Inuyasha, methinks ye should go clean up," Kaede told him drily.

"I told you, there's no point, it got everywhere!" he snapped.

"Then perhaps you should clean everywhere first," suggested Miroku succinctly.

"Meaning?" growled Inuyasha.

Miroku vanished and returned a moment later with a large wooden bucket, filled with soapy water and a rag. "Go clean up the well, and then clean yourself up!"

"What about the foot print?" demanded Inuyasha in disbelief.

"It's not going anywhere," Miroku told him, thrusting the bucket at him.

"Yeah but.." began the dog demon.

"Inuysaha, do ye wish me to get Kagome to make ye sit?" threatened Kaede.

"You miserable old bat!" snapped Inuyasha, grabbing the bucket from Miroku, who swept off again. "This is exactly what I was talking about earlier! I get no respect!"

He turned to go.

"Inuyasha!" called Miroku. Inuyasha turned and had another bucket thrust at him. Water sloshed over the side and soaked him. "Do a good job!" The monk gave him a pleasant smile which made Inuyasha think he wasn't entirely over being left alone in the woods to think about what he'd done.

Inuyasha walked back to the bone eater's well, passing the other villagers, just coming back, grumbling to himself.

"Stupid Kikyo's sister," he muttered. "Damn Kagome, and her stupid sit command!" He came back to the clearing and looked around. Miroku wanted him to do a good job did he? Well Inuyasha would do a great job. 

When he was done not one speck of the red gook would remain on a leaf or strand of grass. Oh no, all the red gel would be in the well, just waiting for Kagome when she went back to her own time. That would teach her for all those sit commands!

When he finally limped back from his cleaning job, the clearing was spotless and so was the outside of the well, but the inside! He had cleaned himself off too, knowing they'd never let him go in search of whatever had left the foot print if he didn't.

When he got back, everyone was in their hut, eating.

Inuyasha smelled ramen and all his anger disappeared.

He ran to Kaede's hut and threw open the sliding door.

"I smell ramen!" he declared.

"Oh, I'm sorry Inuyasha," Kagome apologized. "We ate all of it!"

"What?" he shrieked. He ran and grabbed the pot, sure enough, it was empty. He ran and grabbed her bag, he began to throw things over his shoulder looking for more. "Kagome how could you? You know it's my favourite!"

"Well, maybe if you hadn't eaten two entire containers this afternoon you could have some now!"

It was too much. First he was deprived of his third helping of ramen at lunch time, then he was covered in slime from a worm, then he had the clean the slime, and now they had eaten all the ramen without him?

"How could you eat all the ramen?" he screamed. "I'm so sick and tired of doing all the work around here! Inyasha do this, Inuyasha do that! Save us from this big scary worm demon! Now clean up the mess you made while we go teach a snot nosed brat how to swim!" 

"Hey!" protested Shippou.

"Sit boy!"

Inuyasha's second rant of that day was cut short and he was slammed once more into the ground by that stupid sit command.

"If you don't have anything nice to say," began Kagome calmly. "Don't say anything at all!"

"Your behaviour is very childish Inuyasha," said Miroku, taking a sip of his tea without looking at him. "Really quite abominable!"

"My behavior?" demanded Inuaysha. "She tells me to sit and it's my behavior that's bad?"

"Sit boy," said Kagome calmly.

When he got up Inuyasha glared at them all.

"I'm leaving to find the Shikon jewel on my own!" he snapped. He slammed the paper thin door shut, but his force made it bounce open. He shut it again. As he stomped off he heard:

"He'll be back, he needs you Kagome to tell him where the shards are."

"Stupid Sango!" he muttered sullenly.

He tripped again.

"STUPID POTHOLE!" he screamed at the foot print. He got up and stalked deeper and deeper into the forest.

"I don't need Kagome, I'm a demon, I can handle anything I come across!"

A golden arrow flew past his nose so close he could feel the wind. It hit the tree behind him. He slowly turned to see a shape silhouetted against the night, holding an ornate, glowing blue bow, without a string and unloaded.

The figure reached up to the bow, as if to knock an arrow and then pulled its arm back, a glowing golden arrow appeared, held as if it were a normal one.

"Next time I aim for the tree and hit you!" snapped the figure in a female voice.

"Who are you?" demanded Inuyasha.

"Get back there!" the person ordered, letting the golden arrow fly.

Inuyasha threw himself back and rolled to his knees. He came nose to nose with two golden arrows knocked and ready to fire.

"Get back there!" she ordered again.

"You're not the boss of me!" snapped Inuyasha.

A glint of silver out of the corner of his eye was all the warning he had. He jumped back and dodged a series of strange silver glints in the air, feeling the air woosh as they sliced down, aiming for his chest but he couldn't see what was making them.

"Kamali!" called the strange woman. "That's enough. He's got the message!"

A pale circular face, with blood red fangs, and glowing red eyes appeared. It wore a strange tall, flat hat with a brim and a wide red ribbon across the base of the hat. It wore a blood red bow at its neck and its hands were merely clawed, hollow red gloves with clutched a scythe menacingly.

"Get back to that hut and ask the miko to forgive your rude behavior," ordered the woman in a deadly voice.

"Or what?"

Inuyasha was pinned against the tree behind him, which brought back, terrible, painful memories of Kikyo. He pushed those aside for another day.

He took stock and nearly collapsed.

One arrow had pinned him to the tree at the neck, the other between his legs, far, far, far too close for his comfort.

"Remember folks," said the woman, making another arrow appear. "Neuter your pets to keep the population down!"

"Alright!" snapped Inuyasha fearfully. "I'll go, I'll go!"

The arrows pinning him disappeared.

He took a moment to collect himself and thank every star in the sky that one arrow had been lower. When he looked up to glare at the woman she was gone.

He ran back to the village.

He threw open Kaede's hut's door.

"Kagome! Kagome!" he called. 

"What?" she demanded crossly, sitting up in her sleeping mat. Sango turned on the lantern and glared at him.

"Kagome, I saw her, the woman who kidnaped Miroku, with the face with two hands and everything!" he explained.

"Yeah right!" she yawned.

"No I did!" Inuyasha insisted. "She ordered me to get back here. She threatened to hurt me. She pinned me against a tree!"

"Like Kikyo?" asked Kagome.

"Yes, like Kikyo!" Inuyasha agreed.

"You probably had a nightmare," Kagome said, slipping back under her covers. She put her back to him.

Sango turned out the lantern.

"I wasn't even asleep!" Inuyasha protested. "She was real!"

"If you're not big enough to come back and say sorry, at least let us get some sleep Inuyasha," she told him.

"What?" he demanded. "You think I came back here because I wanted to? After the way you treated me?"

"Sit boy," she yawned.

It was a very gentle slamming, but he was slammed into the ground none the less. 

"You don't believe me fine!" he snapped. "I'm leaving!"

"Goodnight!" she called as he stepped outside.

"Hello Inuyasha," said Miroku. Inuyasha jumped and glared at the monk, leaning against the hut. "I was just passing by and thought I'd check on the girls!"

"You pervert," Inuyasha muttered.

"I couldn't help but over hear your conversation," Miroku continued brightly.

"Yeah I'll bet," grumbled Inuyasha.

"It hurts doesn't it?" Miroku asked him. "Not having them believe you I mean."

The demon glared at the monk and thought longingly of the Tetsusaiga, which could only be used to serve a human. If only he could wipe that smirk off Miroku's face with the sharp end of the sword!

He stalked away, to the God Tree, the tree he'd been pinned to. In a strange way, getting pined to that other tree made him want to be here, made him want to return to the scene of the original crime.

He leapt up into one of it's high branches to sleep, as he lay down on his side, a thought occurred to him.

"I came back!" he screamed into the dark forest. "She doesn't want to talk to me right now, But I came back!"

Confident that whoever the crazy lady with the little demonic minion was, he'd be alright. He hoped so anyway.

Not surprisingly though, that night he dreamt of Kikyo and being pinned to the tree.  
  


The peace of the morning was interrupted by screams and the sound of a violent path being thrown through the forest..

Inuyasha felt the ground shake, even as high up in his tree as he was and he stared to the east.

Huge clouds of dust were being kicked up into the air, birds flew into the sky, squawking madly. The crowns of several large trees went crashing to the ground.

Inuyasha jumped down and ran into the village, where everyone was already awake and half dressed.

"What is that?" cried Kagome.

"I don't know!" replied Inuyasha. "But it's coming from the bone eater's well!"

They took off, Inuyasha carrying Kagome, Kirara carrying Miroku and Sango. Shippou yelled after them, telling them how mean they were for leaving him behind.

As they approached the well, the sounds of great violence grew louder and louder. The earth shook so badly Kagome had to keep an eye out for falling tree limbs.

Thanks to her watchful eye Kirara and Inuyasha were able to avoid four potentially dangerous falling tree limbs.

Inuyasha skidded to a halt and let Kagome off his back. He drew the Tetsusaiga and prepared to run into the clearing with Miroku, Sango and Kirara while Kagome prepared her bow.

The two demons, the demon slayer and the monk were pulled up short when they saw a large worm beast, the same dark green with red tips as the day before, thrashing wildly, angrily.

This time they could tell which end was it's head though. One end open to reveal rows, upon rows upon rows of wildly gnashing teeth.

"I killed you!" Inuyasha snapped indignantly.

The huge tail shot towards him and hit him, knocking him back as far as Kagome, who was stringing her bow. She gave him a curious look.

"I guess he remembers," Inuyasha said getting to his feet.

He ran back.

The worm's head came towards him, mouth gaping.

Sango's boomerang came flying through the air and severed the worm's head. It fell to the dust a few feet from Inuyasha. The same red sludge that had covered everything the day before leaked out of the disembodies ehad and the body.

Sango caught her boomerang and stopped it. She had a satisfied look on her face.

"I think it's safe to go home now!" she said, her voice muffled by ehr mask.

Miroku crept forward, examining the large worm corpse very carefully.

"I wonder what this red smile is?" he mused. He scooped up a bit with his first to fingers and examined it carefully. He took a hesitant sniff. "There's no smell," he commented.

"I coulda told you that!" retorted Inuyasha, laying the Tetsusaiga on his shoulder, rather disappointed he hadn't had a chance to use it. "It's the same red crud as yesterday."

Kagome came out of the bushes, her bow finally ready with a quiver on her back. She must have heard their conversation though because she hadn't knocked an arrow in place.

"Those things sure are easy to kill," she commented. "That must be it's mate or something come to avenge the one we killed yesterday."

"Yeah," nodded Inuyasha.

"I wonder if they've reproduced lately," wondered Miroku. "If so, we may have a whole swarm of worm demons in only a short time."

"Gee I hope not," replied Kagome. "That would be terrible!"

"I can handle it," boasted Inuyasha.

Sango screamed.

"It's moving!"

Sure enough the long body, was beginning to twitch and writhe. 

"Death throws," said Miroku calmly. 

As the body twitched more of the red substance leaked out of it's huge wound. Inuyasha stared at it in distaste, while Miroku seemed to be enjoying his examination of it. 

"I wonder if this gel has any properties that can be used to benefit the village," Miroku wondered. "I hope so. On top of all the slime Inuysha gathered yesterday, we'd have plenty."

"I don't think anyone is going to use that stuff any time soon," Sango said bluntly.

"Oh I don't know," Miroku replied. "It might make a nice lip gloss!"

Kagome and Sango shared a look and made a face. 

Inuyasha sheathed the Tetsusaiga and walked over to the well to sit down on it's ledge. Miroku poked the worm with his stick.

"It has rubbery skin!' he exclaimed in delight. "Look you can poke it and it leaves a funny little indent!" 

The others groaned as he kept poking it. His staff slipped and he accidently poked it right into the open, bloody stump.

Kagome gagged and Miroku looked as though he'd just been punched and a large flux of the red slime oozed out over the stick and onto the ground, creating a little river.

"That's gross!" exclaimed Kagome.

"Yeah Miroku!" agreed Sango in disgust.

"It went down my shoe," said Miroku with a pained expression. He pulled his staff out, increasing the flow of the red semi-liquid.

As he walked away Sang couldn't help but notice that the death throws, the writhing and twitching was getting worse. 

Kirara growled deep in her throat, her hackles raised.

Sango followed the large beast's gaze. The trickle of red was almost connecting the head and the body.

Sango deepened her stance, preparing for trouble. In only one more second a thing line of red would connect the severed head to the body.

As soon as the slime touched the severed head, the death throws stopped being death throws and became the movements of a very angry creature,

"Miroku get away from there!" she shrieked, but too late.

The tail hit him in the back, knocking him to the grass. The body began to rise in the middle. The red slime began to boil and then expand until it had become as thick as the rest of the worm, and the severed head wasn't so severed anymore.

Sango threw her boomerang, aiming for the weakened spot in the worm's neck. It past through again. She cheered silently but her joy was short lived. Instead of again becoming severed, the slime reattached the head before it could even hit the ground.

Still reattaching its own head the worm dove towards her. Kirara knocked her out of the way just in time, but the large worm caught her beloved Kirara in it's huge mouth and tossed it up, as though it would swallow Kirara whole it lifted its head up and opened it's jaws, right beneath Kirara.

Suddenly Kirara changed direction in mid air, still falling limply, but Miroku had caught her in his wind tunnel and was pulling her towards him, away from the worm's jaws. Kirara hit the ground beside the worm, wounded by alive.

The worm targeted Miroku, but an arrow in the side of it's jaw made it pause.

It reared up to it's full height and targeted Kagome.

"Kagome!" called Miroku, still laying in the grass, wrapping his prayer beads around his hand. "Get to the village and get a torch. The only way to defeat this beast is to burn it's slime before it can regenerate!"

"Right!" Kagome took off at a run.

Sango threw her boomerang again. The worm puled up short, making Sango's weapon miss it's mark. 

"Go with her Kirara!" she called to the large beast.

Kirara rose to her feet, laboredly, bleeding from a belly wound and ran towards Kagome, who leapt onto it's back and soon they were out of sight.

Sango's boomerang missed on it's return trip, as the worm dodged again, but she wasn't worried.

Behind the worm, Inuyasha was preparing to strike with the Tetsusaiga. Sango just wanted to keep it's attention on her while Inuyasah struck.

He leapt up, bring the sword up over his head, preparing to bring it down and slice the worm as he had before, when that damned tail slammed into him, right in midair.

Inuyasha crashed into a tree.

"The back end if more dangerous then the front end!" wailed Miroku.

"It's learning!" screamed back Sango. "It knows to fear the Tetsusaiga and my boomerang! It's watching Inuyasha and I too closely for us to get close to it. You'll have to do something!"

"I don't think I can fit the entire worm into my wind tunnel!" Miroku replied.

"You won't have to," grumbled Inuyasha. He stepped behind the monk and held the Tetsusaiga tightly. "Do it!" he ordered the monk.

Miroku looked at him and nodded.

He unleashed the wind tunnel.

The pull was instantaneous. Sango, who wasn't even in it's direct path had to drop to the ground and hold tight to the grass, resisting it's pull.

The worm began to slide towards Miroku, fighting, trying to get away. Fight, slowly, inch by painful inch the worm edged closer and closer, struggling to escape. When Inuyasha thought the worm was close enough, he gave Miroku the command.

Miroku wrapped his beads around his hand, stopping the wind tunnel.

Inuyasha sliced at the worm with the Tetsusaiga. Viciously he hacked it to bits. When it lay in eight different pieces he stopped to rest, breathing hard.

The worm didn't explode this time.

Kirara appeared over head, flying, with Kagome on her back, Kagome held a torch.

"Catch Inuyasha!" she called tossing it to him as Kirara landed.

Inuyasha sheathed the Tetsusaiga with one hand and held the torch in another. He approached the nearest piece of the worm.

"You're not coming back from this!" he told it.

The golden arrows buried themselves in the dirt right by his feet. He jumped back and stared into the tree line.

In the trees stood someone who must have been the same woman as the night before.

"Back up!" she barked.

"You've got to be kidding!" snapped Inuyasha, drawing the Tetsusaiga. 

He was going to make her pay for the night before.

"Put it away!" she bellowed.

"Yeah right!" scoffed Inuyasha, leaping to attack.

The woman watched him come calmly.

When he was only a foot away, she pursed her lips and breathed. A thin stream of something very frost like floated towards him, engulfing the Tetsusaiga.

Inuyasha watched in horror as the Tetsusaiga once more became rusty.

He was still on a collision course though.

He was pulled back by something that grabbed his arms. He as very confident he knew who. He was dropped to the ground next to Kagome. Looking up he saw the strange aple little creature from the night before, wielding it's scythe still.

The woman jumped down from the tree.

She set a large basket down on the ground, and very tenderly she began to scoop up the red sludge and drop it into the basket.

"There now," she said to it soothingly. "I won't let those nasty people hurt you!"

"What on earth?" wondered Sango.

"He only wanted to find his mate," the woman replied. "Then those nasty humans started to shoot arrows at him!" 

"That's the woman who kidnaped me!" hissed Miroku.

"And the one who pinned me to the tree," Inuyasha shot back.

"Sorry for not believing you before," Kagome apologized. 

"Think nothing of it lady Kagome!" Miroku said grandly.

Inuyasha gave the monk a dirty look.

He turned to give the woman a closer look a realized something with a violent start.

"You're a demon!" he shouted.

She nodded.

"Last I looked I was!"

There was a very tense moment in which everyone tried to figure out how to handle this demon.

"Let's help!' said Kagome. Hesitantly she began to pile the red muck into the basket. After sharing an incredulous look the others joined in.

"Why did you kidnap Miroku?" Sango asked.

The woman simply tapped her nose.

"He wasn't in any real danger," she offered. "Kamali was in a tree near by, weren't you little one?"

Kamali let out a high pitched giggle that sent a shiver down Kagome's back. 

"Kamali's really very shy," the woman told them. "He doesn't like to talk in front of people!"

"What's you're name?" Kagome asked her.

"My name is Rasha," the woman replied smiling.

Inuyasha was grumbling to himself, about how easily everyone seemed to be able to forget that this woman had threatened him the night before.

When they were finally done piling the worm muck int the large basket.

Rasha pulled a lid on and hoisted it onto her back.

"Time to get you home to Molly," she told the basket. "She must be worried sick!"

She straightened up.

When Inuyasha got up he noticed something rather disconcerting about her. She stood at least six feet tall. She had very long bluish silver hair tied back in a braid that fell to her calves. Her hands were clawed, she had delicately pointed ears, and had sharp teeth, like many demons. Her skin was tanned, like she spent a lot of time in the sun. 

She was dressed much like priestess, with a white kimono top with long bell like sleeves and long red, very loose pants. Peeking out of the hem of her pants were three cruelly curved claws.

"Did you leave the foot print?" he demanded.

"What foot print?" she asked, confused.

"The big one!" he replied.

Blushing slightly she tugged up the hem of one pant leg to reveal a huge foot with three toes with long claws, and a hell with a claw. She walked on what must have been the ball of her foot, leaving her hell high in the air. She let her hem fal back down, almost obscuring her entire foot.

She looked very capable of handling herself in a fight, even without her magical bow, or her little freaky friend.

"By the way," she said. She turned to Inuyasha. "I'm very sorry about how I treated you last night. I was rude and overbearing and very threatening. I was just very angry at the way you'd gone and sliced up poor Hank. I think I may have come a little to close to scarring for life and I'm sorry!"

"Yeah well you should be!" he snapped, not quite willing to forgive her just yet.

"I really must be getting this guy back to his wife," she said, still friendly as if he hadn't just been rude. 

"We'll come with you!" offered Kagome. 

"Yes," agreed Sango. "I would like a chance to explain to these demons not to come so close to a village ever again!"

"Alright," agreed Rasha.

Miroku and Sango got on Kirara's back as Inuyasha let Kagome clammer onto his.

"Why do we have to go with her?" he grumbled.

"Because she's taking the worm back to his home, because Sango's right, we don't want him coming back and because I want to know where this worm lives in case he does come back!"

Rasha led the procession to a mountain. At the base of the mountain Kagome looked up fearfully.

"That looks treacherous," she whispered.

"Not to worry," Rasha assured her, placing the basket on the ground. "No need to go up the mountain."

She removed the lid of the basket and let out a long echoing, bellowing call.

The mountain began to shake, jarring small rocks loose.

Everyone shared a nervous look, but Rasha seemed unconcerned as if she did this every day.

Suddenly the side of the mountain burst open and huge gaping jaw with rows of teeth was barreling straight for Rasha.

"Found your hubby!" she called cheerfully, holding up the basket.

The large worm, bigger even then the other paused. The worm made a violet motion and let out a sound, much like a cough.

Out of it's mouth fell two pink gems. It grabbed the basket, with the red goo in it and then disappeared back inside it's mountain.

Rasha looked at the pinks shard in her hand.

"No payment is necessary!' she called to the gaping hole in the mountain. There was a sullen bellow form deep within the cave. "But if you really insist thank you very, very much!"

"They're pretty I guess," she said to herself, walking away from the mountain, seeming focused on the two shards. "But they probably aren't worth very much!"

"You're right," agreed Miroku, eagerly. "Let me take them off your hands!"

"Oh, no!" shouted Inuyasha. "If anyone gets those shards of the Shikon jewel it's me!"

"These are from the Shikon jewel?" Rasha asked curiously.

Inuyasha cursed himself for letting that slip.

"Here you go!" she dropped one into Inuyasha's hand and the other into Miroku's. "I don't really have any use for Shikon shards right now!"

"What I need right now is a place to stay!"

"You can come to the village!" Kagome offered. "I'm sure Kaede would love to have you!"

Rasha gave her a smile, which Kagome returned.

Keade was only too glad to welcome Rasha to the village. Kagome could tell Keade was very surprised to have met a demon who wouldn't want shards of the Shikon jewel and who had given them up so easily.

Kagome thought that was good too. It probably meant that Rasha would understand how important it was that the shards didn't fall into the wrong hands. 

Rasha was invited to eat with them, which she accepted graciously. As they ate, every now and then Kamali would appear to take something off Rasha's plate.

"You be welcome to stay here child," Keade told her. 

"Oh thank you," Rasha replied. "Do you by any chance have any old building I could convert into a shop?"

"Methinks so," Keade replied. "But, why would a demon want a shop?"

"Oh well you see I'm a demon by birth, but I have a trade," Rasha explained.

"Ah," Keade took a sip of her tea.

"And what be your trade?"

"Matchmaker!" 


	2. Maniacal Matchmaker

"I don't get it," whined Inuyasha. "What she got that I don't?"

"Well Inuyasha," replied Kamali. "There are a coupe thing things that make males and females different. Most noticeable would be....."

"I don't mean physically!" snapped Inuyasha. "I mean why do people suddenly love her? I mean, Rasha's only been in the village for a week and already she got the entire town kissing up to her!"

He looked over his shoulder and jumped, realizing who he was talking to.

The little spirit grinned, revealing it's blood red teeth.

"You can talk?!" demanded Inuyasha.

"Clearly," muttered Kamali. "I often refrain from talking to strangers, but I decided it would be best for everyone if your mind didn't deteriorate so much that you have entire conversations with yourself!"

"You want I should pound you?" Inuyasha asked cooly, raising a fist.

Kamali giggled insanely. How he did that without even opening his mouth was beyond Inuyasha, but he wasn't really interested in grilling the little sprite, demon, imp..... thing, about it!

"So you gonna answer my question or what?" Inuyasha asked sullenly, looking back at Rasha.

"Well she is a matchmaker, and matchmakers do make people happy," Kamali replied.

Kamali came to hover on Inuyasha's shoulder as the hanyou perched on one of the houses of the village, watching th activity below with suspicious golden eyes.

Rasha, dressed as a priestess was sitting on the stoop of her shop, giggling with a handful of little girls like she was one of them.

"She's a demon!" snapped Inuyasha. "She should be feared! She should be off doing demon stuff, not sucking up to a bunch of snot nosed brats."

"She makes people happy so they like," Kamali shrugged. "When she makes people unhappy they hate her. Same hand you were dealt!"

"What?" asked Inuyasha. "What does dealing have to do with anything?"

"I was trying to sugar coat it, but if you're a big, fat stupid jerk, people will hate you," Kamali said dryly. "If you're nice and want to help, people will like you. Yukai, hanyou or human."

As if to testify to Kamali's words a woman came rushing out of her house and grabbed her daughter by the arm.

"You stay away from my Merine you filthy youkai!" screeched the woman, spitting at Rasha.

Kamali screamed and raised his 'hands' a scythe appeared and he flew towards the woman, gibbering incoherently.

"Hey what the?" demanded Inuyasha.

He leaped off the roof and grabbed for Kamali before the scythe could come down on the woman. Kamali disappeared before Inuyasha's hand connected. Inuyasha landed and looked about, puzzled.

"Where did he go?" he asked, looking around.

"Wherever it is he goes when he disappears," shrugged Rasha, rising to her feet. "Time to go home girls!" she told the children who scampered off, breathlessly waiting to tell their friends about their excitement.

Rasha disappeared inside her hut without a word to Inuyasha, leaving him there standing, feeling like a fool who couldn't even catch a stupid little ball of.... whatever Kamali was!

"Yukai!" The woman who'd angered Kamali spit on him.

"Hey!" he shrieked. "You old hag!" She hurried away with her daughter, ducking inside their house like those flimsy boards could protect them from him if he really wanted to get in!

"Geez, don't thank me or nothing!" he snapped. He leapt to the roof of her hut and banged on it just to be a pest before leaping rooftop to rooftop in the direction of Kaede's hut.

He dropped down and went inside to sulk in the company of those who couldn't glare at him and call him Yukai, like it was an insult.

Kaede's hut was warm and homey smelling. She had a pot of tea warming over her little stove and she was kneeling at a low down table, appearing to be at rest with a steaming cup of tea between her two hands.

"What troubles ye Inuyasha?" she asked him.

"I just got called a yukai," he huffed and sat down.

"And ye are upset?" she asked, taking a sip. "I thought ye would be proud to be called yukai and not hanyou."

"Well yeah, but the way she said it," Inuyasha replied. "She made it sound like a dirty word!"

"Perhaps ye are getting a taste of what life as a full demon is like? Tis not all fun and games!"

"You're a freaky old woman ain't you?" he asked her drily.

Kaede gave him an unimpressed look.

"You are a very rude boy," she told him.

"Yeah, I'll get over it!" He replied laying down. "So, anything good happening recently? Any curses you undid? Any curses you did? And how about demons? Any big bad demons, to fight, not including Rasha or myself? Is Kagome coming back this week? Where are Miroku and Sango? What about the little fox brat?"

"I am flattered ye have so many questions for me Inuyasha," Kaede said. "But I am expecting company and wish to be left alone. If ye do not mind."

"What?" he demanded. "You're kicking me out?"

"Yes," she answered simply.

"I can't believe it!" he snapped. "You can't seriously be kicking me out?"

"Inuyasha, Kagome will not be back for several days, if I wish to have a guest that is my own affair. If ye wish something to do, ye may go to the woods and build something."

"Build something?" demanded Inuyasha incredulously. "What do you mean build something?"

Kaede gave him a dark look.

"Inuyasha, if ye would be so kind as to leave it would be most appreciated!"

Inuyasha spluttered and then stormed out of her hut, grumbling under his breath about old women who liked to be mysterious for no reason!

"My lord Inuyasha!"

"Oh great!" groaned Inuyasha. He looked down, hopping by his left foot was the unmistakable Myouga the flea.

"As if today wasn't going bad enough, ~you~ had to show up!"

"Lord Inuyasha, I detected a most strange demon smell upon entering the city. I fear you have competition!"

"Heh! That's just Rasha," Inuyasha replied, leaping to the roof of a hut. He sat down, chin in fist. Myouga leapt up beside him and then onto his shoulder.

"You know this demon Lord Inuyasha?" Myouga asked him. 

"Yeah."

Inuyasha looked at his tiny insect demon vassal.

'Reduced to chatting with Myouga,' he thought gloomily. 'Is this why I hang around, to be left behind to chat with that old hag and Myouga?'

"May I meet this Rasha, I am curious as to why she is here."

"Why not?" sighed Inuyasha. "It's not like I have anything better to do!"

He leapt to the roof of Rasha's hut and then to the packed dirt right in front of it. There was a large copper bell with a little sign beside it that said: Being alone is not a crime, but if true love you want find, then just give my bell a chime, to find you love I've always the time! 

Inuyasha stared at the sign for a moment, wondering how Rasha had made it this far without being beaten up.

"I can't believe she gets customers this way," he muttered ringing the bell.

"Come in!" sang Rasha happily from within.

Inuyasha pushed open her door and paused on the threshold. Rasha looked up from a stack f papers she was going over and a huge grin broke out on her face.

"Inuyasha, so lovely to see you gain, come to get your star chart mapped?"

Inuyasha was too busy looking around the room in disbelief. Every wall was covered with charts and pictures, some were of the galaxy, others were of various zodiac signs from around the world.

Shelves and drawers were half open and crammed with more paper, off to the side was a room, blocked off by a beaded curtain.

Everything that wasn't paper in the rom was in pairs.

Two quills lay side by side, an ink pot and a spoon were tucked away together, Rasha's shoes were side by side, as were her bow and Kamali's scythe.

"Look I'm not here for some stupid matchmaking okay?" snapped Inuyasha. He flopped back on the floor. "I'm bored!"

"Well in that case you can help me organize!" Rasha said standing up, knocking a large pile of paper of her lap. "You'll never believe how many orders I have to fill and in such a short time. Everything in this room needs to go in there which will be my office. Kamali has run away it seems!"

"I ain't helping you clean!" snapped Inuyasha.

Rasha approached him with a smile on her face.

"Then leave so I can do it!"

Inuyasha thought about his options for a moment. If he did help Rasha, he'd be bored, certainly, but if he didn't, he'd even worse off.

With a sigh he got to his feet.

"Fine!"

"Good, do the heavy lifting!" she replied with a smile. She paused and tilted her head. "If it isn't Myouga the flea!" she exclaimed happily. She stooped down and picked up the tiny little demon. "I haven't seen you since I was knee his to dragork!"

"A what?" demanded Inuyasha.

"Uh, Lord Inuyasha it's a common minor demon from Saudi Arabia, related to dragons," explained Myouga from Rasha's finger.

"Distantly related," Rasha said firmly. "No family resemblance at all!"

"How did you know that?" Inuyasha asked Myouga suspiciously.

"Well you see Lord Inuyasha, your father was a great and powerful demon, revered and respected in many lands. He used to travel from land to land before you were born with his wife and Sesshomaru, your brother."

"How is he?" asked Rasha, dropping Myouga to the floor and picking up her bow. "Still single?"

"Uh, lord Sesshmarou and Lord Inuyasha aren't on speaking terms. In fact last time they met they tried to kill each other," Myouga replied nervously.

Rasha shrugged.

"Sibling rivalry!"

Inuyasha and Myouga shared a look.

"Anyway, I was only a very little girl when your father and Sesshomaru came to my home land to visit my mother Tiamat, she's revered as well. A very powerful demoness. Your father was quite a diplomat and very charming."

"Can't say I remember him well," Inuyasha muttered. "I don't even remember my mother very well!"

"She was a great beauty," Myouga explained to Rasha. "And very kind."

"So Myouga, how's your love life?" Rasha asked right out of the blue.

Myouga gaped at her.

"Uh, lady Rasha is that an all together proper question?" he asked. Inuyasha noticed how bright red Myouga was going and grinned wickedly.

"Careful there Myouga or someone might think you're a cherry!" he said wickedly.

"Leave the poor dear alone!" rasha scolded. "So Myouga, are you a summer or a winter?"

"A summer I believe," Myouga replied frowning.

"Favorite food, place, color, song and part of a woman's body."

Inuyasha and Myouga shared a nervous look.

"Uh, Lady Rasha, you're not getting any ideas are you?" Myouga asked, dripping sweat.

"Nonsense!" laughed Rasha.

"I better be off!" said Myouga, making a run for the door. Inuyasha leapt and caught him in his hands.

"Answer her question Myouga!" ordered Inuyasha, enjoying Myouga's discomfort. He stuffed Myouga under an up turned glass on the table and leered at the little flea.

Cheerfully Inuyasha grabbed one of Rasha's large bureaus and carried it to eh other room, humming to himself, things were looking up already.

When Sango, Miroku and Shippou returned from a demon hunting expedition they found Inuyasha lounging on Rasha's clean floor as the match maker interrogated poor Myouga, still trapped under the glass.

"Now Myouga, as soon as you tell me your favorite childhood toy you're allowed out," Rasha said in a reasonable voice.

"Lady Rasha I beg of you! Release me!" moaned Myouga. "This is humiliated!"

"The path to love is treacherous and full of pitfalls," she said wisely. "Now talk flea or I put you outside to roast in the sun!"

"Stop that!" ordered Miroku. He ran over and released Myouga from the glass. Myouga wasted no time in leaping away. Babbling something about a river of saki and doctor.

"What were you doing to the poor flea?" demanded Miroku.

"Asking him some skill testing questions," Rasha replied innocently. "He's such a baby1 he'll never find true love if he keeps shying away form sharing his inner feelings!"

Inuyasha was trying not to snicker. He was here simply for the tormenting of Myouga. Personally he thought any reason to stick Myouga under a glass and asked him questions he didn't want to answer was a good reason.

"I'm certainly glad you're back though," Rasha said. "If you could fill these charts out for me!"

She handed Sango and Miroku each a large piece of paper and a quill.

"Now be quick! The sooner you finish your chart the sooner I can get your names onto one of my many lists!"

"What lists?" asked Miroku frowning.

"The matchmaking lists of course!" laughed Rasha. 

"You're not serious!" Shippou cried. "You can't match them up! They're happy just the way they are!"

He blinked several times as Rasha handed him a form and his own little quill. He screamed and dropped them, then dashed to hide behind Inuyasha, cowering behind the larger demon.

"Don't let her get me Inuyasha!" he wailed. "She's crazy! You saw what she did to Miroku last week! She tied him up!"

"Get off me!" snapped Inuyasha, pushing the smaller demon away.

Shippou rolled along the floor like a ball until Rasha stopped him with on of her large feet, also like a ball.

Shippou sat up and looked all the way up at Rasha who smiled down on him.

"Why are your feet so big?" he asked bluntly.

Rasha got an uncomfortable look on her face.

"My feet aren't big," she muttered under her breath. "Not where I come from anyway."

"Well here they're huge!" Shippou declared loudly.

"Shippou!" exclaimed Sango, startled by his blunt rudeness.

"You aren't a good judge of feet yourself Shippou, yours are too small!" Miroku replied dryly.

The next thing anyone knew Rasha was sprawled out on the floor giggling, poking at Shippou's little paws with an enthralled expression on her face.

"Eh hee!" she giggled. Shippou stumbled bac, trying tog et away from her. She grabbed his feet and played with them like he was a baby. "Eh hee! Eh hee!"

Sango, Miroku and Inuyasha shared disturbed look.

"Stop that!" Inuyasha ordered Rasha. "You're a demon! Act like one!"

With a sniff Rasha rose to continuing he task she'd been doing before Shippou's feet had entrap her.

Inuyasha was a bout to deliver another scathing comment, but he paused catching a familiar scent on the wind. He leapt to his feet and grabbed the Tetsuiga, staring hard at the door.

"What is it Inuyasha?" Sango asked.

"It's just a pottery wagon," Rasha replied dismissively, turning her back on the door.

The door slid open with a firm sound and framed in it's opening was a young woman dressed as a priestess, sporting a dark look and a bow and arrows.

"Inuyasha!" she spat.

"Kikyo!" he muttered.

Their weapons, at the ready and their dark looks froze everyone in a position of anxious fear. No one wanted to attract he attention of either one of those dark looks.

The spell was broken when Kaede ran up and tried to grab Kikyo.

"Sister, leave him be! Inuyasha harms no one!" she wailed. "Ye promised!"

"Hush Kaede," Kikyo ordered. "I will not harm here, but I will know what another demon is doing in my village!"

"You're village?" demanded Shippou. "This is Kaede's village!"

The dead priestess turned her stare upon the poor little fox demon who whimpered and ducked behind Sango.

"Hello, I'm Rasha," said the matchmaker as if a brawl wasn't about to break out in her house. "I'm that demon you're wondering about. I'm just here to run my matchmaking shop!"

"You are dressed as a miko," Kikyo said, turning her cold dead stare on Rasha.

"Priestess actually," Rasha corrected. "I'm an ordained priestess! Capable of performing legally binding marriages any time any place anywhere!"

"Who was the idiot who gave her that power?" Miroku demanded in disbelieving horror.

"I am Kikyo, miko of this village," Kikyo told her. "Guardian of the Shikon jewel. During my life time anyway. Through the carelessness of Inuyasha and that girl Kagome the jewel was shattered and now fragments liter the earth! Now any demon or human with petty, grasping ambitions can put their hands upon a shard and increase their power, and taint the jewel further! All because of them!"

"True," agreed rasha, nodding sympathetically. "But," she added brightly. "They did it together! And all serious relationships have their hardships. Inuyasha and Kagome have to find the rest of the jewel, Miroku's got a hole in his hand. These are just things they'll have to work out!"

Everyone stared at Rasha like she had grown another head.

"What does my wind tunnel have to do with anything?" Miroku asked.

"What serious relationship?" asked Inuyasha in the same tone. The two boys shared a shrug and a frown. 

"Why don't we all sit down for a nice cup of tea and go over some star charts?" offered rasha in a soothing voice.

Everyone shared a look and then a wary nod.

Rasha bustled about, making tea, seeming oblivious to the tension in the room around her. No one wanted to sit too close to Kikyo and no one wanted Kikyo too close to Inuyasha. 

When Rasha had made the tea, she knelt at the low table with the rest of them and poured. There was silence in the room until Kikyo broke it.

"You do not feel like a normal demon," she said coldly. "Who are you?"

"Why she is lady Rasha!" pipped up Myouga, leaping onto the table. "I came back when i smelled the delicious fragrance of Tiamat's own secret blend!"

Rasha smiled tolerantly and let a drop fall to the table for Myouga.

At his words everyone took a sip of their tea. Just as Myouga had said it was indeed delicious, strong and dark with a bit of a spicy after taste.

"Everything about you is odd," Kikyo said. "Your appearance, your mannerisms, your tea, even your demonic essence."

"She is lady Rasha, daughter of Tiamat," Myouga pipped up.

"We got that part!" snapped Inuyasha, bringing his hand down on the table, intending to slap the flea, who deftly jumped into the protectiveness of Rasha hands. Inuyasha's pound only made the table quake and the tea slosh over the sides of the cups.

Myouga it seemed had forgotten, or was in denial about the afternoon spent under a water glass on a table. Perhaps he preferred the dubious safety of Rasha's hand to the doubtless pain of Inuyasha's.

"Tiamat is the great dragon queen of Saudi Arabia. She is a great demoness, some think she might be as great as lord Inuyasha's father was," explained the flea. "The dragons, like birds are scholars and keep the secrets of the...."

Everyone around the table jumped three feet in the air as Rasha's hand slammed down onto the table with a loud ~thwack~ flattening Myouga.

When rasha removed her hand Myouga was a flat as a piece of parchment. He moaned and moved, regaining his 3D appearance.

"Rasha has been banished from her homeland for causing trouble," Myouga said, sitting down on the table, trying to look dignified with a huge bump on the side of his head. "Many believe she became such a problem child because she never had the wings of all her brother and sisters."

Rasha glared at Myouga as if she was devising the most painful way to kill the little flea. The usually cheerful matchmaker looked for the first time an angry yukai. Her pupils began to elongate, becoming long and narrow.

"Why were ye banished child?" asked Kaede hurriedly, trying to save Myouga from the very angry yukai behind him.

Rasha's appearance returned to normal as she turned her attention to Kaede.

"I was rather unprofessional around home," Rasha replied. "It was just some little thing, but before you know it, they're banishing you for a hundred and eighty years, less a day!" She laughed cheerfully, her anger towards Myouga forgotten.

"Lady Rasha has been banished more then any other demon in the world," Myouga said sagely.

"Why?" asked Miroku.

"Let's see, I was banished form home for unprofessionalism. I was banished from Egypt it was because I was performing a wedding ceremony on the Sphinx. I tripped and accidently knocked the nose off. But I glued it back on as soon as the ceremony was done!" she assured them. She paused. "But I don't think it's quite so sturdy as it used to be. Then came Turkey, I stayed there a whooping fifty years, then my enemies found were I lived and well, it was time to run again. India voted me public enemy number one. Some people are just so sensitive and in China I scared off al the king's suitors. As they banished me they shouted after me 'Go Japan! They like psychos!' So here I am!"

She smiled.

"Why didn't they just kill you?" Inuyasha asked, disbelieving that someone who'd made as many enemies as rasha would just be banished time and time again.

"Well you see being a daughter of Tiamat.." began Myouga.

The table cracked in half a huge clawed foot came crashing down on the table, right on Myouga.

Everyone jumped back, staring in horror at Rasha who'd stomped on her own table. She ground the ball of her foot down on Myouga with her lips set in a tight line.

When she pulled her foot back, Myouga was twitching and moaning in pain.

"Let me take your cups!" said rasha brightly, picking up the shattered fragments of cups that had broken when they fell off the table as the table was broken by a large dragon foot. 

"Oh I understand," Shippou said as rasha walked away. "They didn't kill her out of respect to her mother!"

"That's right!" said Rasha quickly. "Out of respect for Tiamat! She's a scary mama!"

Myouga whimpered in pain and lifted one arm imploring seeking help.

"Lord, Inuyasha!" he gasped. "Save me!"

Inuyasha just sat there smirking. All this Myouga bashing was starting to make him think Rasha wasn't such a bad person after all!

Kikyo followed rasha around the room with her eyes, obviously not trusting the demoness matchmaker.

"Something of your story does not ring true. Why do you not seek the Shikon jewel?" she asked.

"I have better things to do with my time," Rasha shrugged. "After all, it's not like one little gem has the power of the world!"

"She's either insane of brilliant," Miroku muttered to himself, carefully peeling Myouga off the table.

"A little of column A, a little of column B," Shippou said, poking Myouga.

"By the way Myouga, have you met Kaede?" sang Rasha. "She's single too!"

Everyone choked and stared at her.

"Surly ye are not suggesting..." began Kaede, sounding scandalized.

"Don't be silly!" laughed rasha. "It's just that you're single, and he's single and you're both getting on in years. I thought you might enjoy one another's company! Sitting on the porch drinking tea sort of thing!"

Kaede gave her a suspicious look before turning her attention to her sister.

"What will ye do now Kikyo? Ye have seen Rasha poses no threat to the village. Will ye leave and return to your eternal rest?"

"No," replied Kikyo. "I have unfinished business!"

She turned to glare at Inuyasha.

"I will not rest until I have sent Inuyasha to hell!"

"You wanna start this again?" he demanded, grabbing the Tetsuiga. He bared his fangs, ready for her to make the fist move. 

"Kikyo ye promised!" wailed Kaede. In a cold voice she added. "If I cannot trust ye, then ye have no business in my village!"

Kikyo rose to her feet, a deadly look in her eyes. Her clothes began to billow, blown by a breeze that seemed to be wrapped around her. She titled her head back and suddenly the souleaters she employed as her minions appeared, wrapped around her like a bizarre cocoon.

Miroku leapt to his feet and grabbed the prayer beads around his hand and took a fighting stance, ready to unleash them.

"Stay behind me!"

He found himself staring at the back of sango's head as she prepared to throw her boomerang.

He looked down at Shippou who stood be side him and they both shrugged, then moved to stand beside Sango, incase she needed help.

The souleaters began to fly around the room, zooming, blowing charts and clothing, lifting lighter objects clear off the ground and making them zoom about the room, almost as hazardous as the souleaters themselves.

"Watch out!" sango ordered. "Hose things usually go after dead people's souls, but with Kikyo commanding them we can't know what they'll do!"

"Kikyo stop this madness!" wailed Kaede, trying to grab her sister, but she was blown back into a wall. Three souleaters wound themselves around her, binding her in place.

"Stay out of this little sister!" Kikyo said coldly, eyes only for Inuyasha. 

"This sure got bad real fast," Shippou muttered, squinting against the fierce wind, trying to keep from being blown over.

"That's why you don't drink tea with your enemy!" Sango muttered, turning her head against the vicious gust. "This is almost as bad as your wind tunnel Miroku!"

"Not true!" Miroku protested. "You're always on the good side of my wind tunnel!"

Inuyasha ignored everyone but Kikyo, staring at her, waiting for her to make the first move. The Tetsuiaga would be no good unless it was used for a human's cause, perhaps defending sango and Miroku would be as good as using it to protect kagome.

Inuyasha realized that he was fervently glad kagome wasn't here. Not only were meetings with Kikyo always stressful and confusing, leaving him doubting his own feedings and his own common sense, he didn't want to see her get hurt as Kikyo came after him. There were too many others between the two of them already!

"Come with me to hell Inuyasha!" bellowed Kikyo as her eyes began to glow white with the power of the souleaters.

Inuyasha deepened his stance, preparing for the worst.

"Stay low!" ordered a voice, that when whizzing past his ear. Only with his hanyou eyesight allowed him to see the faint form whiz towards Kikyo and only a hanyou or yukai would have been able to see the scythe come swinging down in a high ark.

Something inside his cried out against Kikyo being hurt.

The dead miko cried out in pain and blood splattered to the ground.

Everything froze for a moment, waiting breathlessly to see if the miko would collapse or not.

The power she'd been gathering around herself exploded, throwing everyone back into the walls of the hut.

Miroku caught Sango, who in turn grabbed Shippou seconds before slamming full force into the wooden wall hard enough to make it splinter. 

The souleaters vanished and then everything was still once more.

Kikyo held her shoulder which bled.

Kamali appeared and whizzed around the room to stop in front of the beaded curtain, hovering over Rasha's shoulder.

The demoness held her glowing blue bow with it's golden arrows of light pointed at Kikyo.

Rasha let loose with one that embedded itself in the floor at Kikyo's feet.

"You should leave now!" she snarled, her pupil elongating as they had while glaring at Myouga.

"Lord Inuyasha, Rasha's rage knows no bounds. She must not take her truest form!"

Inuyasha looked at the angry dragon demon and wondered if maybe there wasn't something to that theory.

"I will return!" Kikyo promised. She limped out of the hut.

The others ran tot eh door in time to watch her rise of the ground, borne away by her souleaters, a faint rain of blood fell from her as she flew away.

"Right where the killing blow felled her!" cackled Kamali. "Nice night to sharpen my scythe on a lively corpse!"

"Corpse?" asked Rasha.

"Kikyo died fifty years ago and was recently reanimated by the witch Urasue," Kaede explained wearily. "My older sister was not so vengeful in life, but in death she is sustained only by her hate of Inuyasha and her desire to take him t hell with her!"

"She's awfully eager to go to hell isn't she?" asked Kamali. He laughed maniacally, sending shivers up everyone's spine.

"She and Inuyasha weren't serious were they?" Rasha asked anxiously, as villagers began to file out of their huts, wondering what the commotion from the matchmaker's shop had been. "I mean, things were platonic right? There are no kids I should worry about?"

"No!" shrieked Inuyasha. "Don't be disgusting!"

"Any other girlfriend I should know about?" Rasha asked him, planting her hands on her hips after placing her bow to elan against the wall of her hut. "I mean, how I can I match you and kagome up if your old flames keeps popping up?"

"Match me and kagome?" demanded Inuyasha. "That's disgusting! And Kikyo is not a girlfriend, we had a thing, but I was a long time ago!"

Rasha gave him a hard look and sighed.

"Matchmaking in this town is going to be so much harder then i originally thought!"

She looked over the crowd and a smile began to form on her lips, one that worried those who knew her best.

She bent down and scooped up Shippou, with a dreamy look she walked over to a little girl and set Shippou down beside her.

She grinned up at the others.

"Ain't they cute?" she cooed.

"Ka-Go-May!!!!" wailed Shippou.

  
  


In her floating castle, flying thousands of feet of the groung Sora looked out her tall arched window.

She let out a delighted girlish laugh.

"You can run, but can't hide my pretty!" she giggled. "Soon, you too will bow before the Bird Queen you silly little feather duster!"

She threw open her arms wide and spun about the empty throne room, laughing to herself happily.

She placed her hands against the smooth tubes that line one wall of her throne room. She laughed again more gently and stared into the thick clear liquid that filled it.

"Soon, with the egg of the Wonder Bird i will create my most perfect minion yet!" she said happily.

  
  


The Dancing Shadow looked up at the floating fortress of the bird queen, she ran her fingers up and down the hilt of her mother's sword.

"You can't stay in that castle forever," she whispered. "Soon Sora you'll leave the safety of your kingdom and come to earth, and then Your Majesty, you will be mine!" 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	3. Bird Queen: An Assassin's Quest

"Bye!" Kagome called to her brother as she jumped down the well with a bag stuffed full of food and other goodies for her friends on the other side of time.

Jumping into the well with a huge bag of goodies was easy enough, but climbing out was a little harder.

'Hey guys!" she called up the well, hoping one of her friends was near by. "If you could throw down a vine or something I'd really appreciate it!"

After an anxious pause she sighed. She dropped her bag and scrambled up the well and pulled herself up. She found a vine and wrapped it around a tree, the took both ends and jumped into the well again, making a loop around the tree. She tied one ends around her bag and then she pulled the other end to hoist the bag up. 

It was much easier to think then it was to do. She was just beginning to regret bringing so much food when a clawed hand grabbed the vine right at the lip of the well and pulled it, hauling the bag clear out of the well and pulling her up as well.

She clung to the vine and looked down at her feet kicking helplessly a couple feet above the floor of the well.

"Could you give another tug please?" she asked.

At her request someone tugged on the vine so hard she came flying out of the well. She crashed into something hard and warm, an arm wrapped around her to keep her from falling back.

For a moment she enjoyed being in Inuyasha's arms, surprised that he wasn't pushing her back and calling her a stupid girl.

She opened her eyes and the first thing she saw was a toothy leer.

"Ack Kouga!" she exclaimed pushing him back.

Obediently he released her and let her stumble back, she fell on her backside with a wince.

"Kouga what are you doing here? I thought you were Inuyasha!" she exclaimed, hoping that if her cheeks were red he'd just assume she was angry.

The wolf demon shrugged with a carefree look in his brown eyes.

"I smell different then Dog-Stink," he chided gently.

"Well I'm not a demon," she said crossly, straightening up and dusting off her skirt. "I don't smell as good as you!"

Kouga's lips twitched into a smirk.

"I didn't mean it that way!" she retorted. "What are you doing here anyway?" she asked him.

Without warning he grabbed her and threw her over one shoulder, holding her in place. He took off running for the mountains, back to his den no doubt. Behind him his two minions ran, carrying her heavy yellow backpack

"You don't spend enough time with me 'n' the boys," he told her as the trees went by in a blur. "You spend all your time with Dog-Stink!"

"Inuyasha does not stink!" Kagome said coldly.

Kouga snorted in response.

"Put me down Kouga I mean it!" she snapped. "Or you'll be sorry!"

"Why? Is Dog-Stink going to make sorry?" he laughed mockingly. "The hanyou?"

"There is nothing wrong with being a hanyou!" she snapped.

He snorted again.

"Not if you like weaklings!"

Kagome was growing more and more angry. She didn't like the way he talked about Inuyasha. It grated her nerves when people belittled her dog-demon friend for being a half-breed. There was nothing wrong with it. Besides, as a half-breed he was more powerful then some full blooded demons!

"Put me down Kouga!" she ordered once more.

"I will once were back at the den," he promised, dodging a tree. 

Kagome sucked in a deep breath. She'd tried to be reasonable. "Inu-Yasha!" she screamed.

  
  


Tweek, tweek.

Inuyasha's ears twitched twice. He looked into the distance. It had been faint, but definitely Kagome's voice.

He dropped out of the branch he was perched on and ran to the village. Sango was teaching Shippou how to weave while Miroku stood near by, pretending not to be staring at Sango. Rasha was sitting on the roof of a hut, pretending not to be watching the way Miroku watched Sango, scribbling periodically on a piece of parchment.

"Kagome's in trouble!" Inuyasha called.

Everyone was on their feet at once, running with him in the direction of Kagome's call. Everyone except Sango and Kirara. Inuyasha slowed down.

"Where?" he began.

"Changing into her demon fighting garb," Miroku explained. "Lady Sango wishes to be ready."

"Gee she's taking her clothes off and you're not hanging around?" Inuyasha asked sarcastically, beginning to run once more. "What's wrong Miroku? Feeling sick?"

Miroku pretended he hadn't heard, perched on Rasha's back.

Inuyasha skidded to a halt a second time at the base of a tall mountain. He sniffed the air and growled.

"Kouga!" he snapped.

"Kouga?" asked Rasha. "Who is this Kouga?"

"He's a wolf demon who has an unwholesome lust for lady Kagome," Miroku replied. "Ow!"

Rasha dropped him, straightening up. Her face grew dangerous.

She reached over her shoulder and grabbed her blue, enchanted bow. As always when she gripped her weapon, her priestess's garb transformed into a blue body suit.

"No one messes with true love!" she snarled, eyes glowing dangerously.

Without a word to anyone else she leapt at the mountain, leaping effortlessly from outcropping to outcropping.

Inuyasha and Miroku shared a look a shake of their heads. 

Kirara burst out of the bushes and flew up the mountain, Sango and Shippou on her back, not pausing a moment, leaving the two boys alone at the base of the mountain.

"It seems to be our curse Inuyasha," Miroku sighed heavily. 'To be surrounded by beautiful, but headstrong women."

A tortured scream pierced the air, reaching decibel not possible for humans. With horror the two men realized that it was a demon woman screaming.

Miroku climbed onto Inuyasha's back and the hanyou leapt up the rocky terrain as fast as he could.

Whatever Kouga had done, he'd pay for it!

Inuyasha broke through a wall of trees that hid Kouga's den from sight, the Tetsusaiga raised high over his head.

The sight before him made him land badly, the Tetsusaiga skittering away harmlessly.

Rasha was holding onto Sango, crying fitfully, mumbling incoherently, while the demon slayer tried to comfort her.

Kagome sat on a rock, beside Kouga, who was holding three flowers in his fist, his two henchmen/friends/minions sitting on the ground, the contents of Kagome's backpack strewn around them.

"What's wrong?' Inuyasha demanded harshly, perturbed that his entrance hadn't gone quite as he'd planned.

"She just took one look at us and screamed," Ayame explained, from behind Inuyasha. The red headed wolf demon looked as confused as Inuyasha felt.

"There's three males and only one female!" wailed Rasha, sobbing wildly. "Isn't that terrible?" he raised a tear stained face from Sango's shoulder, lips trembling. "All the others were killed!" She burst into wild, form racking sobs and buried her face back into Sango's shoulder. "It's a matchmaker's worst nightmare!"

Inuyasha groaned and shook his head. He turned back to Kouga and snarled.

"Give me back kagome!"

"She's my woman!" snapped Kouga, jumping to his feet. "She deserves better then you Dog-Stink!"

"Nuh uh!" Shippou snapped, jumping between them. "She belongs to Inuyasha! Now give her back!"

Kouga kicked Shippou away, sending him rolling along the ground.

'Hey!" cried Kagome jumping to her feet. "Don't kick Shippou like that!" She picked Shippou up and sat back down, holding the little fox demon protectively, like he was her life's work. "It'll be okay," she told him firmly.

Everyone took sides, Miroku, Kirara, Sango and Inuyasha on one side, Kouga, and the pathetic remains of his pack, including Ayame on the other.

"Kagome is ours!" Inuyasha snapped. "And we aim to take her back!"

"She's our friend, and you can't just take her without her permission!" agreed Miroku.

"You can't even take her!" Sango snapped.

"Guys, Kouga, come on," Kagome cajoled. "We've got Shikon shards to find okay? I'll come visit Kouga later!"

But her words did no good, Inuyasha and Kouga were too eager to fight one another, and Kouga's remaining pack to loyal not to fight with him. Sango and Miroku and Kirara had to fight, lest Inuyasha face unfair odds.

The tension mounted, as both sides waited for someone to make a move.

"Hey look!" called Shippou, pointing to the sky.

Gliding effortlessly through the air, on large snow white wings was a young woman dressed in a gown or blue and orange, wearing a golden tiara. She surveyed the ground with a distantly interested expression, as she passed over the group she gave a regal wave, which some of them hesitantly returned.

"She's beautiful!" breathed Miroku as she passed.

"Yeah," agreed Kagome, now standing, still holding Shippou tightly though.

They all watched their anger forgotten as the beautiful young woman with long raven hair floated into the distance, almost as if the very air was keeping her up instead of her lovely wings. 

When she was nothing more then a tiny speck in the sky, the tranquil spell that had been woven over them faded and Kouga swaggered up to Kagome, throwing an arm around her shoulders.

"It's an omen for us!" he declared boldly.

"Eeeeeya!" some one cried angrily.

The next thing anyone knew Rasha was there, holding Kagome off the ground, as if the ground was somehow dirty, stomping viciously on Kouga.

Inuyasha sheathed the Tetsusaiga and crossed his arms with a laugh.

"Heh, serves you right," he told the wolf prince as everyone just stared, wondering what had possessed Rasha.

"No, no, no, no, no!" Rasha scolded. "I know you're short on females, but that doesn't mean you can steal Inuyasha's!"

"I feel kind of bad for Kouga," Kagome sighed, as they casually walked through the woods, heading back for the village. She looked at Rasha. "Did you have to stomp on him so hard?"

"The clown is down!" Rasha replied firmly.

"What does that mean?" Shippou wondered.

Rasha tapped her nose knowingly.

Everyone shared a puzzled look. 

"Hey bird brain!" bellowed a belligerent voice. "Yeah I'm talking to you chicken butt!" 

They shared a look and took off in the direction of the voice. They burst into a clearing, but no one was there.

"Up there!" Shippou called, pointing.

Hovering vertically, carefully flapping her wings, to hovering place was the same beautiful woman who'd passed them on the mountain.

"Who's talking to?" Kagome wondered.

"Who knows," shrugged Miroku, craning his neck upwards.

"Well she must be talking to someone," Sango muttered.

"Why don't you and Kirara check it out?" Miroku replied distantly.

Sango looked at him calmly, then did a double take.

Miroku was staring up, like the rest of them, but unlike the others who were scanning the sky for the possible target of 'chicken butt' and 'bird brain' he was looking up the skirt of the woman.

Sango slapped him as hard as she could.

The woman's eyes flickered down to them, but she ignored them for the most part, staring straight ahead.

"Maybe she's talking to that little sparrow, flying away," Kagome suggested, pointing to a speck in the sky.

"Hey song bird, you want a piece of me!" screamed the pretty woman.

The sparrow, seeming to have had enough, wheeled around and flews straight for her, steadily growing in size as it approached.

"Uh, Kagome," Inuyasha said nervously, making sure the Tetsusaiga was accessible in it's sheath. "That ain't no sparrow!"

Within moments the bird was the size of a horse, and still approaching. It cast a huge shadow, almost blocking out the sun when it flew towards the woman. It's body alone was the size of a house, not including it's immense wing span to hold up such a large body.

"What's that it's carrying?" Sango wondered. In one large clawed foot the Wonder Bird held a large round object, large enough to fit Shippou into. The other talons, however her longer then Inuyasha's arm and very, very sharp.

"Young lady!" called Miroku weakly. 'Perhaps you'd better come down now!"

"What no?" the young woman, replied, pulling out a sword, with a flick of her wrist it turned into a long whip. "I've got her right where I want her! Hey Wonder Turd!"

The bird let out a loud squawk that was nether pretty, nor cheerful. The bird turned it's huge talons forward and flew at the woman, screaming.

The woman let out a war cry and flew at the bird in turn. 

The fight was short and brutal, spiraling higher and higher. 

Blood actually rained down on the helpless group, Kirara was the only one able to fly, and she dared not venture into such a dangerous battle without Inuyasha' and Miroku's help.

"We have to do something!" Kagome insisted tearfully.

The two combatants were just specks in the sky now, too far over head, but the large speck seemed to be doing much better then the smaller one. 

"That girl will get killed!"

Suddenly, the smaller form, the woman dove down suddenly, plummeting straight for the ground.

With a loud cry the larger form tried to do the same, but was much less agile in the air with such large wings and body.

Those below realized that the large bird had dropped whatever it had been carrying and now the girl was diving for it, eyebrows set in determination, a look on complete concentration on her face.

She made no move to pull out of her dangerous dive, arms outreached for the object. Just two meters above the tree line she grabbed it and tried to pull out of her dive, but it was too late. She managed only to roll in mid air and then crash through the trees.

There was a thud as she hit the ground, a moment later, there was another. The group rushed into the forest where they'd heard her land.

She was on her back, crumpled, half sitting against a tree, her wings torn, raw and bloody, no doubts from such violence in the air as well as the plummet through the trees. There was a two indents in the ground. One from where she'd hit the first time and bounce, the second was where she'd hit the ground a second time and skidded into the tree.

Her once blue and orange dress was now reddish black from blood, hopefully not all her. Her sword/whip hung in the belt of her torn, stained dress. 

Even though she was unconscious, she had her arms wrapped protectively around the object she'd rescued, holding it to her chest as though it was worth her life. On her face a happy triumphant smile.

Kagome approached first, laying her hand against the round object.

"It's warm!" she exclaimed in surprises, withdrawing her hand in surprise.

"Think it's an egg?" Shippou asked curiously.

Kagome looked and him and nodded, a large grin spreading across her face. "I think it's an egg!"

"She looks pretty bad," Inuyasha commented mildly.

"Rrrrraaaawk!"

The sun was blocked out and they were hit with rushing winds as the large bird dropped on them, hovering above the tree line, beating it's wings angrily.

They had to grab onto the trees and each other to keep from being blown away. After a long time the bird wheeled away in the sky, letting out a piercing, mournful cry and then disappearing.

"We better get her back to Kouga's," Sango commented. "It's closer then the village, and that thing might come back."

Inuyasha grumbled, but agreed she was right. They loaded the unconscious woman onto Kirara's back, in front of Sango and Miroku.

Rasha took the egg, holding it carefully they began their track back up the mountain.

"You think you can make it up the mountain with that thing?" Inuyasha asked her.

"Sure!" she replied. "I grew up hoping sand dunes! Rocks are easy, they stay in one place!"

As they walked, a peculiar sense of being watched fell on them. Rasha, Kirara and Inuyasha especially felt like something was out there and grew more and more edgy.

Kagome shrieked, the Tetsusaiga was out before anyone could bat an eyelash.

"I saw a shadow on that tree branch!" she said pointing. "Now it's gone!" 

"Geez Kagome, way to freak us all out!" Inuyasha snapped, re-sheathing the tetsusaiga. Angry he was so nervous.

"Kagome!" whimpered Shippou, burring his face in the back of her leg. "There!" he pointed. They all turned their heads to see a shadow leap from the ground behind them and seem to disappear.

"Stay close," Miroku, ordered, taking hold of his prayer beads.

Slowly they began to cluster together, watching in every direction, in every direction, almost as once it seemed that the strange shadow lurked, dancing in and out of existence.

"What is that thing?" Inuyasha wondered.

"That, Lord Inuyasha," explained Myouga. "Is the Dancing Shadow."

"Where were you?" Inuyasha demanded.

"Well, I fell asleep in Kirara's fur and saw no reason to make my presence known," the flea replied sagely. 

"The big birdie scared you huh?" Inuyasha demanded.

"Yes!" The flea bowed his head in shame. "Anyway, since you asked so nicely about those shadows I thought I'd explain it to you. It is the trade mark of the Dancing Shadow to see shadows, seeming to dance all around you before.... ulp!"

"Before what Myouga?" asked Inuyasha in a tight voice.

"The Dancing Shadow is a renown, mysterious assassin who's origins are unknown and who goes after humans and demons alike," Myouga explained. "It is often said that once you see the shadow, it is already too late!"

"Great, just great," muttered Inuyasha, taking hold of the Tetsusaiga again. "I wonder who she's after?"

Rasha cried out in pain. He whirled and watched as the shadow ran back to the trees, disappearing, almost as if it had never been there, except there was a deep gash down the demoness's back.

She fell to her knees, still holding the egg, eyes wide and mouth agape in shock.

Kagome hurried to break her fall, easy her down and setting the egg on the ground beside her.

Kagome got a good look at Rasha's back and gasped, three, crisscrossing wounds, deep enough to kill any human alone now adorned the demoness's back, blood poured out, spilling onto the ground and pooling.

"Just stay low and don't move," she ordered, trying to hold the edges of Rasha's wound closed.

Sango cried out, at the same time Kirara bellowed in pain and fury. Kagome turned. Sango held her shoulder, which was bleeding as Kirara bled from a wound down her flank. It appeared the woman and beast had both been hit by the same slash.

Sango, despite her wound targeted the Dancing Shadow and threw.

As if materializing for the first time the Dancing Shadow appeared, dressed all in black, face obscured by black cloth, almost negligently she pivoted and kicked, hitting Sango's demons slaying boomerang and changing it's course instantly. Sango ducked down to avoid having her head taken off.

A second later the Dancing Shadow was gone.

Miroku began to unwind the prayer beads from his hand, looking around, his staff lay forgotten in the grass.

"Hold still a moment," he ordered softly.

"There Miroku!" Inuyasha bellowed, pointing.

Miroku turned his wind tunnel loose in the direction of the Dancing Shadow, who was running along a tree branch.

"No!" groaned Rasha, surging to her knees, eyes glowing. Weakly she grabbed Miroku's wind tunnel hand and pulled him down, pressing her own palm on top of his, to keep his wind tunnel forced to the ground where it could to the least damage.

Eight daggers buried themselves in the ground behind them, eight daggers that had been aimed at Miroku's wind tunnel. Had even one nicked the edges it would have grown with potentially deadly side effects.

Rasha sagged back to the ground and didn't move anymore, breathing in shallow gasps.

Inuyasha looked around helplessly, left and right his comrades were falling, only he, kagome and Shippou remained. Not that those two would be much help.

He caught a surge of black and turned, bringing the Tetsusaiga up.

His sword clashed with that of the assassin. Out of the left sleeve of the assassin's clothes, a hooked blade appeared and was then raked across Inuyasha's chest. He hit the ground, propelled by the assassin's weight. As he rolled to his feet the assassin was already springing up, sword raised, aiming for the woman who'd battled the bird earlier, who had fallen against a tree when Kirara was injured.

"Long live the queen of the birds!" screamed the assassin in a female voice, shocking Inuyasha so badly, he was unable to move. But he saw the fingers of the badly wounded woman twitch.

The Dancing Shadow was female?

The assassin's sword came down, with enough force to slay a demon, just as the sword whip came up to deflect the blow. 

The assassin and the woman she'd declared a queen stared into one another's eyes for what seemed like eternity.

"I wondered if you'd come," she whispered. "So those weren't just empt threats!"

"I never threaten!" the assassin replied in a hoarse whisper. "And I won't rest until you're dead!"

"Then you won't sleep today," the wounded woman responded cooly as the tip of Tetsusaiga was placed against Dancing Shadow's throat.

"Back up, nice and easy!" Inuyasha ordered. "One twitch and you're dead!"

"This is over!" she whispered to the bird queen.

"For today it is," the other woman responded.

Dancing Shadow stepped back, unable to do anything more, for now.

She ducked under the Tetsusaiga and ran at the tree line, jumping into the trees and disappearing.

Inuyasha turned back to the woman, declared queen, but she had already fallen unconscious again.

"Let's get to Kouga's den," Kagome begged, tugging on his sleeve, as he stared into the woods, ready to leap after the assassin. "Please? Between the Dancing Shadow and that bird we're in no condition to do anything else!"

Reluctantly he was forced to agree, Sango, Kirara, Rasha, and he were all wounded. Miroku was shaken up and Kagome seemed near tears, not to mention the extra baggage of the wounded woman they'd found.

Hurriedly they gathered everyone up, forcing Kirara to carry the wounded, even though she was wounded, they didn't have much other choice.

They hurried out of the forest, the trees offering too many places for shadows to lurk. Kouga smelled them coming a mile away at least. With so much blood how could he not, he stood at the top of his ridge and peered down on them disdainfully.

"So Dog-Stink," he called out. "I guess you got in over your head!" 

Kouga was reluctant o let them stay, obviously fearful that the smell of the blood would attract all sorts of unsavory demons and animals, but unwilling to turn kagome away at the same time.

The egg, which kagome had insisted on bringing with them was bundled up in into's top, made of the fire rat's hair and set near the fire so it would stay warm.

Luckily for them she'd brought so much food there was plenty of supplies in her backpack for them to eat.

After having exchanged several terse words with Inuyasha however, Kouga led his pack into the forest to hunt for a more substantial meal.

Rasha was lain in the cave as Sango tended her, used to seeing some pretty nasty wounds frm her line of work as a demon slayer while the other woman was lain outside the cave, near the fire for fear of the stench of Rasha's blood disturbing her. 

When the woman, who'd engaged the large bird in a fight, awoke her first question was about the egg.

She refused to sit still until she'd seen it. Gently stroking it's smooth surface she smiled, sitting next to the fire.

"Many thanks comrades," she murmured, enjoying the heat of the fire. "You shall be rewarded for your troubles most handsomely."

"That really isn't needed," Kagome replied. "It was our pleasure!"

The woman smiled at kagome warmly.

"My name is Sora by the way," the wounded woman said in a friendly voice. "And I really must insist that I reward you all in some way!"

"Like she said, you don't have to!" Inuyasha snapped.

"Now Inuyasha, kagome," Miroku chided, sitting next to Sora and addressed her. "Lady Kagome is correct. We need no earthly rewards." He looked her over appraisively. "If you would do me the honor of giving me a son to carry on my noble lineage, it would be most appreciated.

"Miroku you lech!" Inuyasha snapped in annoyance. "She's still recovering from a big battle!"

"Most of the damage is done to my wings," Sora responded, gingerly spreading them and wincing. "It will be a few days before I fly again, but other then that I function perfectly!"

"I'll say," Miroku muttered under his breath.

Kagome gave him a dirty look and had half a mind to jump up and slap him. Miroku gave her an innocent look and a shrug. 

"As for this son," Sora continued, not noticing the exchange between Kagome and Miroku. "I'm afraid that's impossible until I return to my castle."

Miroku stared at her, then his eyes lit up gleefully.

"But you will?" he asked eagerly.

"Certainly," she replied nodding. "I'm afraid it will take some time before I'm ready to though."

"That's fine, understandable," Miroku nodded quickly. "One shouldn't rush into these things."

"And of course I simply must practiced a bit more, I've never tried it with a human before," Sora continued thoughtfully. "I think I want a little more experience before I start experimenting."

Miroku was staring at the attractive woman, as if she was his salvation, while Kagome, Inuyasha and Shippou stared at her as if she was insane.

"I never thought I'd meet someone who'd actually accept that offer," Inuyasha muttered.

"Me neither," Kagome answered.

"And of course I'm working on someone right now," Sora added, making everyone pause.

"'Working on someone?'" Miroku echoed.

She nodded.

"Of course I need to find a nice strong male yukai to finish that off! You know how ti si when inspiration strikes you just have to go for it, no matter what!" She laughed.

Miroku looked at Inuyasha and Kagome, suddenly a little less certain about her acceptance then before.

"Are you sure you wouldn't rather a daughter?" Sora asked suddenly. "I think you'd make a good daddy for a little girl."

"No, I need a son to carry ob my line of work," Miroku answered.

"It may take couple of tries then," she warned him. "Like I've said, I've never tried a human before."

"That's fine!" Miroku sang gaily.

"This is disgusting!" Kagome muttered darkly.

"Heh!" snorted Inuyasha in agreement.

"Give me your hand," Sora ordered.

Without thinking Miroku extended his wind tunnel hand. The woman casually drew a knife out of her dress and made a move to slash his palm.

"What are you doing?" demanded Inuyasha, jumping to his feet.

Sora paused.

"I need his blood if he wants a child," she replied calmly.

"If you cut his palm his wind tunnel will grow and suck us all in!" screeched Kagome.

"Oops!" she laughed, grabbing his other hand. Without hesitating she slashed that palm and pulled a velvet back out of the front of her dress. She opened it and pulled out a crystal vial, she flicked it open and held it under Miroku's hand, ordering him to make a fist. He did as he was told, blood slowly dripped into the vial, once the vial was full she shut it and released his hand, pulling a bandage out of the same velvet bag and offering it to him.

She put the vial int the velvet bag and dropped it back down the front of her dress.

"What was that for?" Miroku asked curiously as kagome wrapped the bandage around his wounded palm.

"Well, I can't very well create you a son if I don't have your blood!" the winged woman laughed. "I mean honestly, my magic is strong but not that strong!"

"Magic?" asked Miroku.

"Yes," she replied frowning. "You did know I was the Bird Queen didn't you?" she asked him.

"No," the monk replied frowning.

She didn't look pleased.

"Then how did you know I poses magic similar to Urasuai's?" she asked in an unpleasant tone.

"Who?" asked Miroku frowning.

"The witch who creates her army out of clay and deceased souls," Sora replied. To Kagome, it sounded as though this woman was helping Miroku study for an exam. "Only I use blood and souls that have not yet attached themselves to bodies and spin flesh from them."

"I didn't know such a thing could be done," Miroku admitted.

"But then why did you ask me to give you a son if you didn't want to spin one for you from blood and a fresh soul?"

Inuyasha fell over laughing, suddenly understanding. Kagome sent him a dirty look, trying to stifle her own giggles.

Miroku glared at them, he turned back to Sora and suddenly felt at a loss to explain what he'd meant. 

"I meant give me a son in the traditional manner," he explained.

Sore blinked, frowning, turning that over in her head, trying to make sense of such a strange comment. 

"Oh!" he breathed nodding, like a light bulb had turned on. She blinked twice, suddenly she looked much less friendly. She turned to Miroku with a glare.

"Pervert!"

The sound of his slap echoed down into the woods scaring the deer Kouga and his mean were following.

Kouga looked up at the mountain, in the direction of his home and grumbled.

Sora stormed into the cave angrily, leaving Miroku clutching the side of his face, moaning in pain. 

"Ha ha," Said Kagome unsympathetically.

"Serves you right," agreed Inuyasha.

"Some friends you are!" Miroku muttered.

"Ho there Dog-Stink!" called Kouga, trudging up the hill. "Could you all make some more noise? I don't know that you've frightened all the game into hiding yet!"

"It wasn't me, Miroku was putting the moves on Sora and she didn't like it," Inuyasha said between clenched teeth.

"And another thing you hentai!" Sora began storming out of the cave, shaking her finger in Miroku's face. "I am Sora, Queen of the Birds, yukai, I have the power to create life! What on earth makes you think I would ever consent to the touch of a mere monk?" She paused, catching sight of the three male wolf demons, and the sulky Ayame, who wasn't pleased that Kagome had returned to steal Kouga from her.

"Well," breathed Sora softly, eyes only for Kouga. "Aren't you a magnificent creature?"

Slowly, she walked towards him. She ran a hand gently down his arm.

"Athletic and muscular," she purred. She trailed his fingers over his abdomen, as she walked around him, looking him up and down unashamed of her bold stare.

"What's he got that I don't?" Miroku muttered?" sulkily. Kagome brought her fist down on the monk's head calmly.

Sora leaned on Kouga, staring into his face, while Kouga looked around nervously, unprepared for someone to come onto him so strongly.

"Such cute ears!" She tugged on his pointed ears. She gave a throaty chuckle. "I'd almost given up ever finding anyone as perfect as you!" She gave a girlish giggle and clapped her hands. She wrapped her arms around Kouga's neck and hung off him fro a moment. "I need you she whispered. "Will you help me?"

"Ah....sssure," he stuttered.

Sora gave a warm laugh and grabbed his hand, the same knife she'd used on Miroku only moment's before flashed out and she left a deep cut on Kouga's hand.

"Hey!" protested Ayame, not wanting to see her beloved leader get hurt. "What do you think you're doing.

Sora produced the same velvet bag with vials and dripped Kouga's blood into the vial before flicking the cap back in place and dropping it back into the bag which again disappeared down the front of her dress.

"Your blood, plus the blood I harvested from the dragon demon and the egg of the Wonder Bird!" She exclaimed returning the knife to it's hiding place. She gave a squeal of laughter and spun about on one two. Her dress billowed up to her knees, but Miroku didn't even have the heart to peep.

A sudden idea occurred to her. She turned to Miroku.

"Can I use you blood for this too?" she asked eagerly. "I bet you were the cutest little boy in your village!"

Miroku thawed slightly at the compliment.

"I suppose," he said grudgingly.

"Oh thank you!" she squealed, throwing her arms around his neck and hugging him tightly. She grabbed his face and kissed him, right on the lips.

She gave another helpless giggle when she pulled back, Miroku seemed much less cross towards her now.

"You're going to be my crowning creation aren't you?" she asked the egg tenderly, kneeling beside it, still sitting beside the fire. "A true soul, and a mixed heritage! You're going to make me so proud!"

She wrapped her arms around it and giggled again.

The demons and humans shared a puzzled look over the young queen's head, who was giggling, happy as a clam. 

  
  


Sitting with her back against the tree's thick base, dancing Shadow watched the Bird Queen's joy. She pulled out a knife and flipped it up in the air a couple times. A joy the would soon be cut short.

She threw the dagger at another tree, the knife embedded itself up to the hilt, right in the center of a leaf.

She drew her mother's sword and looked at the crest on the base of the blade. She ran her hand over it, then, almost against her will, she turned it over in her hands and bitterly read the inscription out loud.

"To my most loyal warrior, and most trusted advisor. May your sword always be sharp, and your aim always true, for my life and yours."

She sheathed the sword once more, the time for sentimentality was not now. Now was the time to dace off into the night and lay in wait for when that silly, stupid queen made her next move. There were other ingredients she would need to finish her experiment with life. And she intended to make sure that Sora never finished it!

  
  
  
  


Author's notes: 

Does anyone know how to spell Urasuai's name? The crazy with who brought Kikyo back to life? I just haven't been able to find any fanfics with her names in them! It seems she's not a real crowd pleaser! So anyway. I know there might be some spelling errors, but well, get over it, I did spell check it, more then once so anything that's wrong should be blamed on my computer, whom I suspect is having illicit relations with the enemy! Anyway, enjoy. P.S. if someone, other then Super Ceech and Calum the Angel actually read this I would love some reviews and feedback. And if it's only Calum and Ceech, meh! I'll get over it won't I?

So enjoy ladies and possible gentlemen and I want you all to know that while I may be hiding in my room, getting my a tan from the glowing warmth of my computer screen, I am not a crook! Okay that's about enough babble! Stay tuned for more supper cool stuff to come, next 'episode' called Big Girl's Don't Cry (a little jab at the icy cool Bee-otch Dancing Shadow) when we learn about why the Dancing Shadow hates Sora so much, despite the fact Sora's about as scary as a fluffy bunny slipper (the kind not possessed by evil demonic forces bent on devouring your feet and feeding your cat hair to their dark lord.) 

Right, I've babbled enough. I'm logging off now! 


	4. Big Girls Don't Cry

Disclaimer: If I owned Inuyasha, you would be seeing this on TV, not reading about it off fanfiction.net! Enjoy. That's right Ceech'N'Calum! I'm talking to you! 

"...and after that I never ate green berries again!" Sora finished.

She was carrying her precious egg, whom she'd named Ryuuji, they were on their way back to the village. Kouga and Inuyasha really couldn't stand one another for longer then they had to, and the cave really was too small for so many people.

Sora's wings still hadn't healed all the way, so she walked on the ground with everyone else. Much to Inuyasha's delight they'd left Rasha behind at the cave because of her badly wounded back.

The look on Kouga's face had been priceless as Rasha had handed him a star chart and ordered him to fill it out, and no cheating.

"We'll have to send Kamali up to keep her company," Kagome said thoughtfully.

"And to keep her from doing some drastic to poor Kouga," Miroku muttered.

"I really can't believe a daughter of Tiamat was banished from her home land. I mean, that's a scandal and a half!" said Sora thoughtfully. "Well, I suppose the fact she doesn't have wings could have something to do with it!"

"How?" asked Sango frowning.

"Well you see," Sora began. "Dragons, in that particular form have wings, and sometimes have tails. For Rasha, I think you said her name was, not to have wings means she's a birth defect. An abnormality."

"Yeah, she's abnormal alright," Inuyasha muttered.

"Why does she have big feet then?" Shippou asked frowning. "Is that abnormal too?"

"No, that's common for dragons to have such large feet, on the shifting sand of the desert they live in large feet evenly distribute their weight to keep them from sinking," Sora replied.

"You sure no a lot about dragons for a bird!" muttered Inuyasha suspiciously.

"Can't you see the lady is a well learned woman of the world Inuyasha?" demanded Miroku. "A thousand pardons lady, Inuyasha speaks without thought!"

"No it's okay," Sora replied. "Dragons and birds descend from the same race, we're both scholars and gatherers of information. Dragons are most honored among the demons of Saudi Arabia while birds have sort of carved a nice, respectable nice for themselves as rulers of the Northern Lands."

"Northern Lands?" frowned Kagome.

"Japan is divided into four parts, each a compass point," Sora explained. "The Bird Court rules the Northern Lands, and I rule the Bird Court. The Eastern Lands are ruled by a serpent named Din. The Western Lands are ruled by Sesshomaru, I think he's a neko demon...."

"Sesshomaru?" demanded Kagome worriedly. "He's Inuyasha's half brother!"

Sora blinked.

"Really?" she asked. She gave Inuyasha coy look. "You're nothing alike!"

"Tell me about it," Inuyasha grumbled.

"Who rules the Southern Lands?" asked Miroku.

Sora's face darkened considerably.

"A very bad man. A gryphon demon," she said shortly. "Power hungry and mad. Pray you never him. A more ruthless killer never existed."

Five knives came sailing out of the trees. Sora whimpered and clutched the egg tighter.

"Where are you?" wondered Inuyasha, drawing the Tetsusaiga.

"Here!"

She exploded out of the bushes like a bolt of black lightning, sword drawn she ran at him, Inuyasha prepared for her attack, but it never came. Seconds before a head on collision the Dancing Shadow leapt and somersaulted over his head, landing behind him.

Miroku went to unless his wind tunnel but, no sooner had he grabbed the prayer beads then a knife came sailing at him and embedded itself in his left leg. He groaned in pain and fell to the ground, his legs giving out.

Sango threw her boomerang, by some luck or perhaps fate it caught the momentarily distracted assassin in the back, sending her flying.

As the weapon returned to it's wielder's hand however the assassin pivoted and snatched it in midair.

Inuyasha, who waited for his chance couldn't help but noticed that the delicate fingers that were clasped on the boomerang were clawed.

He paused and slowly looked up at the Dancing Shadow. For the first time he saw her eyes, staring angrily over the cloth that covered her face. No mistaking those eyes.

"You're a demon!" he whispered in surprise. "A demon who works for humans!"

The Dancing Shadow threw the boomerang aside and turned to face him.

"Clever little dog boy," he replied in a low, dangerous voice. She sheathed her sword. "You figured me out. Now can you guess why?"

Without any warning, and now disarmed she threw herself at him. Her left foot connected with the Tetsusaiga and sent it flying into a nearby tree.

Momentarily stunned by the loss of his powerful weapon Inuyasha was not prepared for the onslaught of vicious, unarmed attacks.

He crossed his arms over his face and leapt back, but to no avail. A human would never have been able to follow him, but alas, the Dancing Shadow was not human.

"Why are you attacking us?" Inuyasha grunted as a kick made it past his defenses. She dropped to the ground and swept his legs out from under him and drew her sword, rising to stand over him.

"Because you travel with the Bird Queen," the assassin replied between clenched teeth, bringing her sword up once again. It's blade caught the sun light as the blade consumed Inuyasha's view.

"Falling Sky!" screamed Sora frantically.

The assassin paused, Inuyasha heard a quick intake of breath. Seeing his chance Inuyasha rolled away, and none too soon.

Fiery rocks began to rain down from the sky, where he and the assassin had once been. The Dancing Shadow sheathed her sword and dodged the burning debris furiously dancing in and out of them as if she was truly no more then her namesake. Finally the deadly hail passed and the Dancing Shadow stood on a patch of earth that had survived, despite the hail of falling volcanic rocks.

Without a word she leapt into the trees and was gone once more. Everyone waited breathlessly for a minute or so, waiting to see if she would return, but nothing.

"Why didn't you do that Falling Sky thing earlier?" Inuyasha demanded Sora crossly.

"I had my hands full!" Sora shouted back, indicating the egg she'd gently placed on the ground. "And besides, I thought you had it covered!"

"I did," Inuyasha spat sullenly, he marched up to the tree that had the Tetsusaiga embedded in it's trunk he yanked it out, rusty once more and re-sheathed it. 

"Is everyone okay?" Kagome asked.

"Miroku's hurt," Sango replied. The monk was sitting in the grass, being tended by Sango.

"Lift your robes up," she ordered.

"Why lady Sango," purred Miroku. "I had no idea you felt that way about me!"

Sango looked like she would have slapped him, but since he was already hurt she refrained.

She tore the hem off Miroku's robe and wrapped it around his bleeding thigh.

"Shouldn't the doctor get a closer look at the wound first?" he asked innocently. "After all my pants are in the way!"

"Does the patient want his condition to become critical?" asked Sango between clenched teeth.

Miroku sighed and pouted. As Sango straightened up, his face took on a mischievous cast however and he grabbed her backside.

"Pervert!" she shrieked and slapped him across the face. Miroku picked up his staff, whistling cheerfully.

"Come on, once we're to the village we'll be safe," Inuyasha said sharply. We don't want to be hanging out here any longer then we need to be. That Dancing Shadow could come back at any moment."

"I'm surprised you couldn't handle her Inuyasha," Shippou said in his oh-so-innocent-and-yet-obnoxious tone of voice. "She's just a girl I mean!"

Inuyasha stomped on the little demon, which made him cry and run to Kagome who picked him up and comforted him with a death glare at Inuyasha.

"She's a demon okay?" snapped Inuyasha. "That's why I couldn't beat her! She's a demon assassin!"

"Peculiar," Miroku mused. "It was my impression that most demons refrain from taking human professions. Most would feel it beneath them."

"Well Rasha's a matchmaker so why can't the Dancing Shadow be an assassin?" Kagome asked. "I mean, aside from being an assassin it's not really doing anyone any harm!"

"What?" demanded Inuyasha.

"I mean, what harm is it for a demon to have a job and earn a living like humans?" asked Kagome. "I guess it depends a little bit on the job but I don't see anything wrong with a demon having a nice harmless job."

"It's unnatural," Inuyasha muttered. "Demons working like lousy humans!"

"What's wrong with working?" Kagome demanded angrily.

"Kagome, demons are not meant to work. Look at Rasha. She's a matchmaker a more harmless job cannot be found. Yet she'd been banished how many times?" Miroku replied reasonably.

"Oh," mused Kagome nodding. "I see your point Miroku!" She shrugged. "But I still don't see why it's unnatural!"

~*~

"Damn demon hunter," she groaned. She carefully removed her clothes and set them aside. She slipped into the bubbling hot springs. Too scalding for humans, but rather nice for a demon.

The heat did wonders for her aching back. She would heal quickly but that was small consolation for how much her back ached. She wouldn't have been surprised to learn that her spine had been cracked.

"I guess the rumors about the entire village being destroyed were inaccurate," she murmured to herself. "Pity. It would make my job much easier!"

She looked at her left hand and flexed the fingers which ached with dull throbs. She'd probably dislocated something, grabbing that stupid boomerang like that. Well no matter. She cracked her knuckles loudly and waggled the fingers under the steaming water.

She'd been unprepared for that barrage of fiery kill rocks. And though she was loath to 

admit, startled. She hadn't seen that attack in four years, since her mother died. 

~*~

~Time Warp back to yesteryear~

~*~

"Shikara!" called ehr mouther out the door.

The newly fourteen year-old girl winced at the use of her childhood nickname. Only her mother and father ever called her that anymore. Not even uncle was allowed, it was too humiliating. It meant æPrecious' or something in Tengo.

"What is it mother?" she called back, carrying a heavy load of firewood towards the house. 

"I have a present for you!" her mother called back.

Eager for her birthday present, to celebrate her fourteenth birthday she ran into the house, pausing only to drop the wood off at the backdoor then dash inside.

Her mother's large, swan like wings were folded demurely at her sides, but her bird of prey like eyes were alight with pride.

In her hands she held a box. 

"What is it mother?" she asked in breathless excitement.

"Why don't you open it Shikara!" her mother replied.

Happily she took the box from her mother and opened it. Inside was a pretty blue dress, folded up. She pulled it out and held it up to herself, grinning.

"I know it's your favorite color," her mother said. "And we have a ball next week and I couldn't help but notice the way you and that blacksmith boy have been making eyes at one another....!" Her eyes were mischievous.

Shikara blushed bright red.

"Oh mama," she replied waving a hand. "He has all the villager girls falling all over him. Why would he want me?"

"Because you're the prettiest!" her mother replied like it was a well known fact. "And because you won't fall over yourself for him. You'll walk past him, give him a smile and make him feel lucky to even fetch you a drink!"

Shikara laughed, setting the dress aside and dropped into a deep curtsy like her mother had taught her.

"I do hope you'll dance with me later," she purred. "I would be desolate should you neglect me!"

"Make sure you save at least of those dances for your old man!" her father ordered, coming out of the next room, dressed all in black, in loose baggy clothing, ready to train. He tugged on Shikara's braid. 

"Daddy!" she admonished scandalized. "You can't tug my hair anymore. I'm growing up!"

"Yes," he agreed. "Despite those led weights we put on your head you seem to be doing just that!" He sighed mournfully. "Soon I suppose you'll be to big to twirl!"

"Daddy I'll never be that big!" Shikara laughed.

"Well then m'girl!" he said, sweeping her into a big bear hug. "What are we waiting for?" He twirled her around the room, even going to far at to lift her a few inches off the ground.

Shikara squealed with laughter and spread her arms out like they were wings.

"Look mama, no hands!" she laughed.

~*~ 

~Time Warp Ending~

~*~ 

Shikara straightened up and grabbed her clothes. Enough time spent relaxing. She'd indulged her pain long enough. If she coddled her body it would become weak, which was why she must push herself to the very limit of her endurance. She dressed quickly, despite her aching hand and sore back. She grabbed her weapons and hid them within her clothing, and then she leapt into the trees.

~*~

"Why don't you just give the damn egg back?" screamed Inuyasha as he and the others ran for their lives, being chased by a very angry Wonder Bird.

"It's mine, I fought her for it fair and square!" Sora replied, holding the egg tighter. "Besides, it's too late now! I'm not going to stop just to hand it over and hope she'll accept an apology!"

"It's gaining on us!" screamed kagome, who was ridding on his back. Miroku and Sango road on Kirara, who was running beside him. Sora's were still too wounded to take any passengers.

"Are we leading it towards the village?" Sango asked, loosening her boomerang. 

"That thing can see for miles, it's already spotted to the village!" Sora replied, jumping over a fallen tree. "The village is only in trouble if that thing sees us going into the village!"

"Up Kirara!" ordered Sango.

"What? No!" shouted Miroku as Kirara jumped up, high above the tree line. 

Sango threw her boomerang. Her aim was true and she silently rejoiced as it hit the Wonder Bird full in the face and then came twirling back to her. She threw it three more times each time hitting the Wonder Bird across the beak.

Finally the Wonder Bird let out a ear splitting angry call and wheeled around. The air, buffeted by the Wonder Bird's wings nearly sent Kirara plummeting to the ground, but luckily the demon cat caught herself and landed, badly on it's feet.

"Well," said Sora coming to a halt. "I suppose that's a good thing. But let's keep running just to be sure. We really don't want it to catch us in the village or it will know where to find us!"

"You're more trouble then you're worth," Inuyasha told Sora bluntly. "First you've got that stupid egg, which you won't put down for any reason, then you've got the Dancing Shadow on your tail and now the Wonder Bird! We would have been better off bringing Rasha along and leaving you at the cave!"

"Inuyasha, that isn't very nice," Kagome said under her breath.

"No," Sora said setting the egg down. "He's right, I am a lot of trouble!" She squared her shoulders and stuck out her chin defiantly. "However, I am worth a lot as well. My agents are all over this land, keeping their eyes and ears open. If there is something to be known, the birds will know it first. Now, I may be causing you a lot of trouble. But if you help me, I can give you the location of three of the sacred Shikon Jewel Shards!"

"How?" demanded Inuyasha suspiciously.

"Think how many bird there are," Sora said calmly. "I am their queen. They speak to me, they give their knowledge. Every week entire tomes are filled with what the birds have learned and I know of at least three Sacred Shikon Jewel shards. And I know you search for them. And I know you're the ones who shattered. A carrion crow told me. Now, if you will put up with these disturbances until I have healed enough to return to my kingdom then you will rewarded. If not then we should part ways here!"

"Don't be silly," kagome assured her. "Of course we're not going to let you go off on your own in your condition! Being so wounded!"

~*~

"So you see Kouga, kagome can never be your woman."

Kouga's eyes were glazed. Rasha had just given him a three hour sermon on true love, fate, star charts, the mystical power of matchmakers and where babies came from. Just in case he didn't already know.

"But I said she was my woman," Kouga protested.

"But she's not," Rasha said patiently. "Just because you keep saying that doesn't make it so!"

"She's my woman and I'll fight that hanyou Inuyasha for it to the death!" Kouga declared jumping up and striking a dramatic pose.

"Yeah boss!" called henchman/friend/minion number one, with a mohawk.

"You tell her!" agreed the other henchman/friend/minion.

Ayame sulked, glaring at Kouga, but loving him desperately at the same time.

Rasha slowly rose to her full six foot height, staring into Kouga's eyes with her own golden ones. Kouga had the disconcerting feeling of staring into a sand storm.

"The clown is down!" she told him firmly.

"What does that mean?" he demanded.

She tapped her nose and sat back down.

She turned to Ayame.

"Now, as soon as you can get Kouga here to stop chasing after Inuyasha's woman, I can perform your marriage ceremony!"

Ayame's ear's picked up and a grin began to spread across her face. Kouga looked at her, suddenly very, very, very nervous.

~*~

"Tis a strange magic you have," Kaede mussed, stirring the fire back to life. They'd introduced Sora to the village priestess. "Urasuai's foul magic is a blight, but yours seems not so evil somehow."

"That's because I take a soul that doesn't yet have a body," Sora replied with a smile, stroking the egg. "And then I spin flesh from fresh living blood. From willing donors!"

She smiled blissfully and lay her head on the egg, her hair falling precariously close to the fire, which was warming the egg.

"You stole and egg from the Wonder Bird," Inuyasha muttered.

"Hey, it's morally correct, not safe!" Sora snapped.

"What's so moral about stealing a mother's aby?" demanded Sango. Even she had her limits and being attacked twice in one day because of Sora was coming close to them.

"She has others!" Sora said defensively. "She has eight other eggs! I'm doing her a favor, by taking this little guy I'm making sure that the others have more food!"

"What'll it be when it hatches?" Shippou, asked, laying a hand against the egg curiously.

"Well, he'll be powerful, strong, unique and utterly amazing," Sora sighed happily, starring off into the distance. She smiled dreamily. "My finest creation."

"You say that like you've done this before," Miroku said shrewdly.

"I have." Sora sighed and hunched forward, leaning her elbows on the knees of her crossed legs. Miroku discreetly checked to see if any cleavage was showing, but sighed and settled back. He was at a bad angle and her hair was covering everything anyway!

"I've been doing this since I twelve," she explained. "Ever since my body guard went missing. She'd been given a duty of guarding an outpost, she used to visit three times a year, but then, she just stopped. I never saw her again. Signus, my adviser suggested I beginning to sue the power of the Bird Queen, but I was a rank amateur. I made tons of mistakes, including the Pandaroo, Octorrot and the Cock'N'Bull."

"What are they?" asked kagome. 

"I haven't always been to skillful with blending bloods," Sora replied. "And you can only do this if you blend blood, otherwise the soul refuses the blood. It's very rare that you can actually find a soul, un tapped and blood of the same creature. The trick is to make a concoction of the right elements, but there were some pretty bad mistakes. But now, I'm ready to move onto demons. And I'm very good at my work now."

"What about those mistakes you made?" asked Shippou. "What happened to them?"

"They're at my palace," Sora shrugged. "I made them so I'm responsible for them. Just because they're not perfect doesn't mean I don't love them!"

"What I want to know is why this Dancing Shadow is after you," Inuyasha growled. "She's attacked us twice, once badly wounding Rasha!" He thought a moment. "Not that wounding her is a bad thing or anything. I'm just saying, that could have been me!"

"I'm a queen. Queen always have enemies," Sora replied vaguely. "Does she need a particular reason to want to kill me?"

The sliding screen was pushed open by a panicked villager.

"My lady Kaede," he gasped. "Trouble. A giant chipmunk is attacking!"

"Ooh a chipmunk, I'm real scared," Inuyasha muttered.

"Inuyasha!" chided kagome grabbing her bow and arrows and rising to her feet. She slipped on her shoes and hoped out the hut. "Show us the way!" she ordered.

~*~

æChipmunk' was technically accurate, but there was something horribly wrong with this chipmunk. For one thing, it was bigger then a house and it had a long serpent's tail instead of legs.

It stumbled/slithered about the forest, not actually attacking the village yet, but making a bee-line for it. 

"Today just gets better and better!" Kagome exclaimed sarcastically.

She aimed an arrow at the creature but a tentacle wrapped around her wrist and jerked her aim off.

A disgusting slimy slug like creature with long, flailing tentacles slithered out of the trees. She screamed and ran back, rubbing her wrist, trying to get the slimy disgusting feeling off her skin.

"Sango, you take the slug, I'll take this guy!" Inuyasha ordered, pulling his sword.

The chipmunk turned on Inuyasha and growled, clocking the attack with it's claws. Miroku ripped the prayer beads of his wrist and aimed his hand at the chipmunk, as Inuyasha dodged out of the way.

He paused.

Sora was staring at the huge chipmunk creature with a strange expression on her face.

"Looks cobbled together doesn't he?" Sora whispered.

Miroku frowned and her, then turned to the chipmunk and nodded. The creature did indeed seem to be æcobbled' together.

He opened his hand and unleashed the wind tunnel.

The creature was too big to fit into his wind tunnel easily, but the pull did distract it long enough for Inuyasha to cleave it's head from it's body. There was a disgusting wet sound as Sango sliced the slug creature in two.

"Oh yuck!" she moaned picking up her weapon, as yellow slime dripped off it.

Kagome gagged and Shippou stuck his tongue out, covering his nose. "It smells like toenails!" he protested.

"I wonder what this is," Inuyasha mused, leaning on the Tetsusaiga and peering down his nose at the chipmunk. "Looks kinda weird!"

Whistling cheerful he slid the Tetsusaiga back into it's sheath and walked back towards Kagome.

She suddenly straightened up, pointing an arrow at him.

He froze, staring at her in disbelief. She aimed over his left shoulder and let the arrow fly.

Inuyasha turned and watched in slow motion as the arrow flew, beginning to glow with kagome's miko powers.

For the first time he noticed the black figure, crouching on one branch, casually. Seconds before the arrow hit, the form dropped and landed in a crouch at the base of the tree.

"You again?" Inuyasha demanded in aggravation drawing the Tetsusaiga. "I'm giving you a warning now. I'm having a bad day, you should get the hell out of here before I take it out on you!"

"You're not the one I want," the Dancing Shadow said calmly walking towards him. No tricks, no shifty assassin movements, no actual dancing shadows. Just a woman, dressed all in black walking towards them. "Give me the Bird Queen and you'll all go free. I assure you, no one else has been given this offer!"

In response they jumped in front of Sora, ready to attack.

"Can't fight your own battles can you majesty?" asked dancing Shadow scornfully, coming to a halt.

Inuyasha narrowed his eyes.

He could see her clearly for the first time. Such a slim, lithe body beneath those robes, how the hell could she pack such a punch? He growled. She didn't look any more dangerous then a daffodil on a sunny day, even in her robes. How could she be such a threat? And why was she so damn insistent on getting Sora.

She drew her sword and pointed it at Sora.

"Leave them out of this! You and I! One on one! May the best demoness win!"

"Too much talking!" Inuyasha snapped, leaping at the assassin. Three knives flew at his face, and she disappeared, flickering back into existence behind him.

"Someday Sora, I'll make you pay for what you did!"

And then she was gone, before her knives had even embedded themselves in the dirt. Miroku bent down one to examine it and sighed in disgust, throwing it down.

"This isn't one of hers," he told them. "I saw her daggers. When she threw them at me. They were better quality then this!"

"Why use them?" Shippou wondered.

"She doesn't want to waste good knives on a warning," Sango sighed.

"Come back here and fight!" screamed Inuyasha into the woods. "Get your ass back here right now!"

"Inuyasha," Kagome said softly. "Do you really think you have the strength to fight her?"

"Of course!" he replied indignantly. "I can take her! What, you think just because I was chased by a bird and attacked by a giant chipmunk I can't take out some wimpy assassin?"

"Let's get back to the village," Kagome said, shaking her head. Miroku picked up one of the knives again and made it disappear into his robes. 

Inuyasha sullen sheathed the Tetsusaiga again.

"Stupid Dancing Shadow. Why'd she come back just to threaten us?"

"She came back, to offer a challenge," Sango corrected him. She sent a look at Sora. "One which won't be accepted!" she added firmly.

She may not appreciate being attacked because of the Bird Queen, but she wasn't about to let the flightily demoness take on the hardened assassin.

"What does she think you did?" Kagome asked Sora.

"I wish I knew," Sora replied sadly shaking her head. "I have no idea at all!"

~*~

She stared at the tree trunk in front of her, shaking in suppressed anger. She had to force herself to breath evenly and softly.

The nerve of that bitch to even pretend she didn't know what she'd done! To pretend that she hadn't given the order. The order that had ruined Shikara's life!

~*~

~Time Warp back to yesteryear~

~*~

There was a knock at the door. Shikara went to go see who it was. They weren't expecting anyone today, so she was suspicious.

She opened the door and was greeted to a sight that would have terrified most girls her age. A dozen or so demons, wearing the crest of the Bird Queen, carrying banners with the same crest stood on the front lawn, in a clumped together, bumpy line. They were trying to look professional and failing with flying colors.

Only one was a Tengo demon, like her mother. The rest were assorted forest demons.

"We're here to see your mother little one," the Tengo demon said smiling. He seemed to be there leader, since he carried the crest of the bird queen.

She gave him a suspicious look.

"Did you hear me sweet pea?" he asked. He leaned forward so they were eye to eye.

"One, I'm not little. Two I'm not sweet," Shikara told him darkly. "Three...." She stepped back into the house and slammed the door in his face.

She hurried out the back of the house, where her mother was hanging the laundry.

"Mom, there's some demons out there with the bird crest!" she said urgently.

Her mother's eyes went distant. She nodded and straightened up, flaring her wings, knocking any lose feather free to flutter to the ground.

"Get your father," she ordered crisply, eyes already focused on the house.

"Mom, don't go," Shikara said grabbing her hand as she tried to pass. "Mom, please don't go!"

"Shikara, we must obey the queen," she said firmly, looking into her daughter's eyes. "And I must go!"

"Mother their presence can't mean anything good!" Shikara protested, ashamed to feel tears burning in her eyes. She dashed them away. 

"Shikara, I know what I'm doing," she said crisply. "Now, run along."

She strode back towards the house, flaring her wing again, giving her a fierce, but angelic appearance.

Shikara watched her walk towards the house for a full ten seconds before she turned around and ran away.

She didn't know where she would go, but her feet took her to her father's training hut. Blinded by tears she pushed the door open and stumbled in.

"Father!" she wailed, interrupting his training. Eh turned and gave her a look that was both annoyed and worried.

He walked towards her giving his class a nod, letting them relax for a moment.

"Father!" she sobbed, as he pulled her to a corner to hear what she had to say in quiet. "Father, the bird queen has sent messengers

Kilem's face took on a dark cast. For a moment Shikara was afraid he was angry at her for disturbing his class.

He pulled her into a fierce embrace.

"We must be strong, come what may," he told her. He kissed the top of her head. "Now dry up those tears. Big girls don't cry."

~*~ 

~Time Warp Ending~

~*~

Author's note

I have no idea what to call my next chapter. Super Ceech, Calum, you wanna help a friend out? D.S. is in it, Sora too. In fact the entire gang is there, except Rasha and Kamali, but that's because they're probably off doing something matchmakerish. What should the next instalment be called? Help me! Come on! You know you wanna! Sorry for spelling errors, hey, whoever can find the most spelling mistakes gets a prize.

For Calum and Ceech whoever finds the most gets to the be the first to have their OC kiss someone

For anyone else (just in case Siniver is reading this) they can suggest something I'll add to the story just for them! 


	5. Deadly Duel in the Sky!

A/N I am totally stealing Calum the Angel's idea for the title. Thanks completely muffin! Ooh! Spacey just had a thought! This is totally on an unrelated topic to the fanfic, but Calum, Ceech, which is better for Eros to call Desdamona in Endora's Forum, Pet, or Muffin? I doubt anyone but we three will have even the foggiest idea on what I'm talking about. But since it's just us here! We're good to go! So yeah, that was a thought! Maybe both? Eh? Eh? Right, back to the actual reason we're here. On wards and upwards with Sora and Shikara! 

P.S. Some really weird crap was happening with these weird ae things appearing. I have no idea where they came from, but I caught a couple on this one too. I think I got rid of them all, but more might appear. So, no idea what they were. Have fun looking for mistakes in this one as well! 

With an enraged scream she slashed at the offending tree. The slash from her mother's sword was clean as it hacked the tree in two.

Shikara landed in a crouch.

She was screaming wordlessly in rage she pounded the soft earth.

"Damn you Sora!" she screamed. "Damn you! I've found you Bird Queen! Your days are numbered! I'll make you pay!"

~*~

Sora stared up at the sky thoughtfully. Letter, dark threatening letter holding a promise of spilled blood had been arriving for her since the day she was coronated. Most threatening had been the last four years. A new batch in different handwriting had arrived.

Her advisor Signus had brushed them off as nothing, while her guards all agreed they were a genuine threat. Sora herself had felt there was something different to these letters, an undertone that was more then threatening. An undertone that was certain. Unadulterated hate.

She'd sent out her bird spies, to gather as much on this Dancing Shadow as she could. Whispers, faint and uncertain had reached her ears back in the Bird Court. But nothing concrete. Nothing substantial.

It was as if the Dancing Shadow was smoke, or indeed a shadow. An illusion, a spell, an apparition, an angry ghost. Something! But not, something that one could learn anything about.

Despite protests from her guards, Sora had struck out on this quest, determined to find the Wonder Bird on her own. Despite the death threats, despite the Dancing Shadow.

She looked over her should at the egg, warmly wrapped in blankets and as close as was safe to the fire to keep warm.

She smiled tenderly.

Resolve darkened her eyes.

Dancing Shadow be damned! She was not going to die before she completed this experiment!

~*~

"After a hard day's fight it's always nice to relax in these hot springs," Kagome said slipping out of her clothes.

"But you have to watch out for Miroku," Sango warned her. "He's a lech."

Sora nodded and slipped out of her dress and into the warm water.

"Aren't you taking your crown off?" Sango asked her with a frown.

Sora shook her head and ducked under water, her crown stayed in place, even though her hair billowed out in the water.

"No, I'm keeping it on. Safer that way."

Shrugging Kagome and Sango joined her in the water.

They splashed around, until they heard a rustle in the bushes by their clothes.

"Miroku!" bellowed Sango, lobbing a rock at the bushes in an angry throw.

"Yes?" They turned around slowly to see the monk kneeling in a clump of bushes on the other side of the hot spring from where they'd heard the rustle.

"If you're there," said Kagome slowly. "Who's that?"

"Bet I know!" Inuyasha growled deep in his throat, he drew the Tetsusaiga and leapt into the air.

The tell tale daggers flew at him as the Dancing Shadow burst out of the bushes, her own sword drawn.

"She's a lech too?" wondered Shippou, peering out from beside Miroku.

Inuyasha and the Dancing Shadow clashed.

An arch of blood spurted, from who the girl's couldn't tell. 

"Iron Reaver Soul Stealer!" screamed Inuyasha.

The Dancing Shadow plummeted into the water, sending up a huge splash. The three bathing girls screamed and retreated back, Miroku looked forward avidly. With dark glares at the monk they ducked down up to the chins and began to envision terrible things that might befall a lecherous monk.

Inuyasha landed in the water, his sword still raised, ready for an attack.

"Where is she?" he demanded looking in the smoky murky water. "Where is she?"

He turned to demanded the girls where she was, but he trailed off, seeming to realize he was one of two people wearing clothes in the water, and they were not among those two.

He blinked a few times, staring at them, Kagome mostly. Even though only her head and upper shoulders were visible it seemed t be enough. More then enough in fact.

"Uh...." he said trailing off, cheeks going red. He didn't look as though he knew what to do next. 

A clawed hand shot out of the water and grabbed him by the hair, dragging his head under water.

"Nothing like a little flesh to cloud a man's mind!" grunted the Dancing Shadow shoving him under. She held the struggling Inuyasha's head under water as he flailed and cried to claw her.

"Inuyasha!" protested Sango. She grabbed the Dancing Shadow and jerked her back.

The Dancing Shadow's claws raked across the girl's face.

"Don't interfere demon hunter!" she spat. "Or you'll die like Sora!"

"Duck!" ordered Miroku.

Obeying him the three girls ducked under water as he unleashed his wind tunnel.

The Dancing Shadow was pulled towards him, she drew daggers even as she was sucked back, prepared to slice his hand off.

Seeing the blades glittering Miroku wrapped the beads around his hand hurriedly.

He absolutely couldn't risk a nick, it could very well kill them all. With a sudden jolt he realized that the Dancing Shadow knew nothing about that. She only knew it was pesky. She had no idea what drawing blood would do to him.

"Care for me to cut that hole out of your hand?" she demanded, slashing at him with her daggers.

"No!" he cried, leaping back. "You must understand, my wind tunnel is a curse!"

"Then let me fix it!" Dancing Shadow growled. She turned suddenly in mid air and kicked him in the jaw, sending him flying.

He crashed into a tree and turned, ducking, just as her claws hit the tree where his head had been only moments before. The force of her blow splintering the wood. Out of the corner of his eye he saw the golden glint of the rings of his staff.

"Please listen!" Miroku said, scrambling back. "If my hand is cut, my wind tunnel will grow, and devour me!" She was getting closer, but he was getting closer to his staff. If he could just distract her a moment longer.

With a wicked glint in her eyes she slowly drew a knife and positioned it, holding it by the tip to throw at him.

"Well, why didn't you say so?" She cooed.

A knife embedded itself in the ground between his middle and ring finger.

He gaped at it in horror.

"I missed." That seemed to throw her off for a moment. Her eyes above the swath of cloth that covered her face narrowed. She drew another knife. "Now hold still!"

He jerked his hand back as another knife hit the dirt, right where his palm had been.

"Listen to me!" he insisted. "Not only will I be sucked into my wind tunnel! But you as well. Anything! I saw my father get sucked into his own wind tunnel right in front of my eyes! There's still a huge hole where he stood! It's still twelve feet deep! Even after all these years!"

She hesitated.

"Then I aim for your throat," she decided finally.

"Wait!" Miroku protested, still moving backwards.

The knife, poised to fly hesitated a moment.

"Will you do me the honor of having my child?" he asked desperately, his left hand fishing blinding.

"Miroku!" objected Shippou, jumping up and down. "Now is not the time!"

There!

Before the dancing Shadow was able to eloquently put her refusal, or think of a new way to kill him his hand wrapped around the smooth surface of his staff. He brought it across her face with all the force he could muster.

The wide arch and the power behind the swing, sent her sprawling. He got to his feet and grabbed the staff, just in time. A kick snaked out, a black boot hit the staff in his hands, had it had been holding it, he would have found himself with at least five broken ribs.

He swung again.

She ducked and swung at him, which he blocked. They traded blows for a while until she dove down, going on one knee and drove her hand against his knee.

He cried out in pain and his left leg gave out.

She kicked off his right leg and snapped kicked him in the face, flipping through the air to land several feet away.

Miroku fell forward, his knee and face throbbing. He had passed out before he even hit the ground.

She turned on the hot springs.

She ran at the scared girls, who hadn't left the safety of the water yet. She laughed at their foolishness. Sora even stood in front of the other two. Nothing between Shikara and the bird queen. Nothing between her and her revenge.

She leapt, drawing her mother's sword, and realized a minute too late that Sora's face was afraid, but their was a silent smirk in her eyes.

æYou deserve whatever pain you get!' she told her self in disgust as the hanyou burst out of the water in front of her, swinging at her.

She felt a burning line carve itself along her chest. Five sharp points were driven into her gut. She gasped, eyes going wide as Inuyasha's claws bite as deeply into her flesh as his sword had.

A second swipe of his might sword sent her flying. She crashed into a tree and fell to the ground.

He advanced on her as she tried to hold her wounds closed. She struggled into a sitting position.

He was a mighty opponent. Deadly. Even without that sword he was as dangerous as she. There would be no shame in dying by his hand. 

But Shikara wasn't going to die.

Oh no. Not while Sora lived. She would not die until she'd slain Sora and dance on her grave.

"Wings of Death!"

Huge ethereal purple wings appeared, spreading from her back. Translucent and ghostly. Suddenly the feathers began rushing at him, each as sharp as one of her knives and just as deadly.

As he was pushed back, trying to block her attack with his sword, even as they sliced at him, she got to her feet, leaning heavily on the tree she staggered away, one hand wrapped around her abdomen to keep her organs in.

~*~

Inuyasha grunted as he was shoved back into the water by the assassin's attack. The ghostly feathers shredded his fire rat hair protective shirt and left little, paper thin slashes all over his body.

Finally the attack ended and he opened his eyes and peered into the trees where the Dancing Shadow had disappeared.

"Gone again!" he growled darkly, sheathing the Tetsusaiga. "She's getting to be a real nuisance!"

He turned around to see if the girls agreed, and was greeted with a huge rock, right in the face.

He cried out and grabbed his face, falling back into the water.

"What the hell was that for?" he demanded.

"Pervert!" snapped kagome glaring at him, lifting the rock up to hit him again.

"Geez I was just trying to help you!" he snapped.

He climbed out of the hot spring growling. "You save a girl and she hits you with a big rock!"

He stopped only to grab Miroku by the robes and drag him away from the hot spring. The unconscious monk gave no protest.

~*~

"Wow," said kagome pulling on her clothes as fast as she could. "That was scary!"

"Yeah!" agreed Sango. "I guess we can't bathe without posting a guard!"

"Miroku would volunteer," Kagome muttered.

"I was thinking Kirara," Sango answered.

She paused and frowned.

"Where is Kirara anyway? She's usually with the boys while we bathe."

"She was wounded yesterday remember?" asked kagome. "When the Dancing Shadow slashed you and her. At the same...."

She trailed off.

"How is your arm?" she demanded, realizing she hadn't asked about it yet.

"Not bad," Sango answered, showing her the wound. "It wasn't deep. I think the sword bit deeper into Kirara then it did in me."

"How are those scratches?" kagome asked her, peering at her friend's face.

"They don't look bad," Sora pipped up. The Bird Queen had been looking thoughtfully into the woods until now. She exited the water. "They'll sting a while, but as long as her claws aren't poisonous you should be fine. They probably won't even leave scars if you take good care of them."

They slithered into their clothes and hurried back to the village. Quite certain that the Dancing Shadow wouldn't make anymore attacks that day, though unwilling to stay out int eh woods longer then they had to.

~*~

Shikara stumbled blindly, finally leaving the safety of the trees to collapse in a meadow. She tried to crawl, but was too weak.

She rolled onto her back. Her right arm was numb from sword play, her chest bled sluggishly from a wound that hooked from her upper right shoulder to her lower left shoulder. She touched the wound gingerly. He must have created that strange little hook with a figure eight like slash. She let her hand fall limply beside her. Just thankful it had been as high as it was.

Between her throat and her heart, her collar bone deflecting most of the damage.

She couldn't say the same of the wound in her gut. His claws, and fingers even had been driven deep into her flesh and the wounds all bled, as though she'd just received the wound.

All her aches and pains from the day before ached afresh, her back, felt as though she'd been cracked with that huge boomerang again.

That stunt she'd pulled, kicking off the monk and kicking him in the face while flipping. Dangerous and unexpected, but painful. Very, very painful.

Shikara knew she was in trouble when the sky above began to darken unnaturally. She moaned and tried to move, but her muscle's wouldn't obey her. She closed her eyes and surrendered to the darkness.

~*~

~Time Warp back to yesteryear~

~*~

Her hearing better then her father's she'd heard the sounds of a fight before he had. She stiffened in her father's embrace.

"It's your mother isn't it?" he demanded. For the first time she saw fear in Kilem's eyes. He kissed her cheek. "Stay here Shikara!" he whispered and ran out the door.

She reached for him, but he was already gone.

She stood there, holding herself, digging her claws into her arms, bitting her lip. She could hear the sounds of a battle raging.

"It'll be alright," whispered a gentle voice. She turned and stared into her uncle's eyes. "It's alright. No one is stronger then your parents. No one!"

She gave an involuntary cry and looked towards the door.

She tore out of his grip and ran, skidding on the grass, staring into the distance, over the trees.

Huge fiery rocks rained down from the sky.

The students of the dojo gasped from behind her. She turned around and stared at them. Were they strong enough? Could they fight? 

Breathlessly she took stock. Bitterly she realized none would stand a chance.

"Go get help!" she ordered her uncle and ran.

He called her name. Her real name.

She ignored him and ploughed into the woods.

Shikara burst through the trees near her home and ran up the hill where she could hear the battle raging.

"Mama!" she screamed. "Daddy!"

Kilem appeared in the doorframe.

"Shikara get back!" he ordered.

"Wind Strike!" she screamed making a clawing motion. A whirl wind spun itself into existence at her command and surged past Kilem into the house. She jerked her hand back. The whirl wind returned, three men caught up in it. At her command the twister rose into the air and then she crushed her fist and it disappeared. The men plummeted hundreds of feet to crash to their deaths before her eyes.

"Looks like the little girl fancies's herself a warrior," leered the man who'd called her æsweet pea' and ælittle one.' 

He wasn't in the house.

He came from around the family's private bath house, an ugly smile on his face. Twisted amusement shone in his eyes.

In one hand he carried her mother's bloodstained sword. In the other, he carried her disembodied head.

He tossed it at her.

It rolled towards her and came to rest at her feet.

Shikara backed up in horror, shaking so badly she couldn't stand. She slumped down to the ground crying and trembling, staring at, that, that thing! That thing that had once been apart of her mother.

She looked up as the leering man lifted her mother sword high above his head, the blade glittered, consuming her entire field of vision.

She waited for the blow that would end it all. Surrendering to death. 

~*~ 

~Time Warp Ending~

~*~ 

Shikara opened her eyes and looked around, frowning. Someone had found her, moved her, removed her clothes, tended to her wounds, masterfully, and had covered her up to keep warm, leaving her alone in a hut.

She sat up, her wounds protesting, but she ignored them.

"You're awake."

She turned sharply, hiding her discomfort.

Her eyes narrowed dangerously.

Not so alone after all it seemed. But how had this woman managed to conceal herself from her? And why did she have no scent?

Shikara sniffed and frowned, realizing with disturbance that this woman did indeed have a smell. The smelled faintly of claw and graveyard dirt.

"I am Kikyo," she declared in her soft voice. "And you are fortunate to be living."

"Did you heal me?" Shikara demanded.

"I did."

She was a priestess, judging by her garments. And there was something faintly reminiscent of someone else Shikara had met.

"That girl with the Bird Queen. Is she your sister?" she asked suspiciously. Her healer or not, she would die if she was?

"No," the priestess replied. She hesitated then asked. "This girl, who else did she travel with?"

"A demon," Shikara said promptly. Her voice turned hard. "A formidable fighter. One who does not need his mighty sword to be a threat." 

Suddenly she screamed in rage and brought her hand down on the wooden floor, breaking the boards and numbing her already injured hand. 

"Damn that dog-demon I was so close! Unarmed and waiting! Helpless!"

"Inuyasha," Kikyo guessed. 

"You know him."

It wasn't a question. It was wasn't a threat, but it was a none too friendly suggestion that this Kikyo start talking before Shikara was forced to kill her, for associating with those who associated with Sora.

"I do," agreed the healer. "But I am not his friend. And I will not rest until he is dead."

Shikara paused to consider her words a moment. The Dancing Shadow nodded and rose to her feet. He ignored the protests of her wounds. The sun was up and birds were cheeping. By her guess this was yet another new day.

"You ,must rest," Kikyo told her firmly rising.

Shikara ignored her and strode to where her clothes were piled. She slipped into them quickly, trying to avoid aggravating her wounds. She looked at her array of weapons, eight daggers, one sword, a cruel hook that would fit in her sleeve and a black velvet rope which could be used to strangle.

She made them all disappear into her clothes and stuffed her feet into her boots. She made sure all the knives, vials of poison and other treasures were where they belonged before she grabbed her scarf and began to wind it around her hair and face.

"You are weak!" Kikyo insisted. "What are you going to do?"

"I'm going to find Sora, and I'm going to kill her," Shikara answered simply. She adjusted her scarf and strapped her sword to her waist.

She turned and caught the priestess's wrist, seconds before she'd made contact. Between her thumb and for finger the healer held a pink shard of a gem.

Narrowing her eyes Shikara crushed the bones of the wrist.

The Priestess dropped the shard to the ground and held her wrist in pain. Glaring at Shikara with hate.

"It is only a shard of the Shikon Jewel to help you," she protested. "To give you strength!"

"I don't need any strength but my own," Shikara told her coldly and knelt to pick up the shard and examine it. She looked the priestess in the eye. "As thanks for tending to my wound, you won't die today."

She pocketed the shard and walked out of the hut.

~*~

"Alright, this is getting monotonous!" Sora screamed, holding her skirts up so she could run faster. She looked over her shoulder as the Wonder Bird pursued her. She ducked behind a tree, leaning hard against it, breathing raggedly.

The Wonder Bird screamed in rage and she felt the strong wind of it's wings buffet her. She grabbed her whip sword and turned around. She could barely see because of the wind, but the sharp talons and beak built for tearing was enough to persuade her that maybe hanging around, for any reason wasn't a wise one.

"Leave me alone bird brain!" she screamed slashing. 

The bird screamed at her as her sword whip connected. Sora didn't stay to relish her victory, she ran.

She'd been out for a morning stroll, to work her weary muscles and get enough room to take a few practice beats with her huge wings. They were healing nicely, if she were any judge, but it would be a few days yet before they could support her weight. A few more before she would be able to return home with the egg in tow.

The Wonder Bird gave one last cry and took off again. Sora sighed in relief. The Wonder Bird may have been a powerful sky warrior, but she was not meant to fight her battles so close to earth and it must have exhausted her.

Not to mention the clutch of eggs she had back at her nest, waiting for their mother to keep them warm. Sora hoped they'd hatch soon so the Wonder Bird would stop pestering her.

She had enough troubles, what with that assassin thirsting for her blood.

Sora began to walk back towards the village, thinking.

The Dancing Shadow. There was a puzzle and a half.

Where had she learned Wings of Death? Where on earth had that assassin picked up such a dangerous attack? Wings of Death was an attack taught only by the elite royal guards of the Bird Court. Few could teach it, fewer still could master it. Sora herself couldn't manage much more then a few wimpy feathers, that seemed to hover on indecision on whether or not they actually existed.

If she was lucky, she could cut paper, if not, she'd cut herself!

That the Dancing Shadow could use the move was impressive. That she could use it while wounded was scary. What must that attack be like when she was at full health?

Sora hoped she never had to find out. 

~*~

"No, no, no, no!" Rasha snapped throwing her hands in the air and wincing. "Ow!" she moaned pathetically, putting a hand to her wounded back. 

She glared at Kouga who refused to behave and do the wedding march properly.

"How many time have I told you?" she demanded. "Start on the left, walk slowly, and smile Kouga this is your wedding day!"

"Uh.... no it isn't!" one of his henchmen replied.

Rasha fixed him with a dragon's stare and growled deep in her throat.

"Alright from the top!" she snapped in annoyance. "Kouga comes u, then Ayame, come to the front, I do the ceremony, then you kiss. It's not hard!"

"Kagome!" wailed Kouga suddenly. He fell to his knees and looked up imploringly at the sky. "Save me!"

Rasha sighed in annoyance and waited as he broke down sobbing.

"It's better he get hysterical now," she explained to Ayame who looked hurt. "Rather then the actual wedding day. Trust me. I've performed ceremonies where the groom breaks down. It's never pretty!"

~*~

~Time Warp back to yesteryear~

~*~

The sword came down. She could actually hear it swishing towards her, the bizarre sound it made as it approached. Very likely the same sword that had killed her mother. Her mother's sword.

"Sweet dreams precious!" crooned the sword's wielder.

Anger sparked in Shikara's eyes. 

The sword seemed to slow down. It was like the word had suddenly stopped moving and the sword was all there was. A slow sword that looked like it was trying to fight the air to get to her. She lifted her hands as it arched towards her. 

She didn't know who was more surprised.

Him, for being thwarted, or her, for thwarting him.

Without knowing it, she'd risen to one knee and caught the sword between the palms of her hands before the blade could hit her.

She jerked it out of his grasp and swept his legs out from under him. The sword went flying through the air.

She was up and running for it before he'd even hit the ground. She grabbed it's hilt and spun to face him, bringing the sword down in front of her to defend any attacks he might have.

She kicked him in the face, knocking him back, skidding across the ground to hit the wall of the bathhouse.

"No one calls me æprecious' but my parents!" she snarled and slashed.

~*~ 

~Time Warp Ending~

~*~

The night had been a great friend of her for the last four years. As an assassin that was hardly surprising. Despite the healer's efforts Shikara had been forced to rest. The entire day and now night had fallen and the moon was high.

Dancing Shadow waited patiently, sitting on a thick branch of a tree, her back pressed firmly against the trunk.

She wasn't strong enough to fight that demon again. No. Most definitely not. But that didn't mean she wasn't strong enough for an assassination.

She'd tried to be polite, she'd tried to be reasonable. She'd given them more then enough chances. She had never been more lenient with people who'd gotten in her way before.

She'd had enough.

She dropped from the branches.

She walked through the village, unafraid of being seen. She found him, sitting in a tree as she had been only moments before.

Her clothes had given her camouflage, but his red clothes were like a beacon. She shook her head and leapt.

She grabbed a tree branch with her right hand, her left hand protectively on the hilt of her sword. She flipped around the branch to land on it's top. She jumped to the thick branch where he lay.

She approached him, moving across the branches noiselessly. She drew a dagger from her boot and continued her stealthy approach. Great fighter or not, he was helpless to her now.

She raised the dagger to slit his throat, when suddenly, for the first time, she caught his scent.

As a bird she didn't have a very good sense of smell and she had to be this close to him to actually catch it.

Her eyes narrowed. What was wrong with his scent?

When she realized she gasped and fell back.

His eyes shot open, his hearing much better then any human's.

"You!" he growled, reaching for his sword. She stopped him and backhanded him, then clamped her clawed hand over his mouth, digging her nails in, just to be sure he got her point.

"One word and I kill you and anyone you bring," she told him growling in her own right.

He glared at her with his golden eyes.

"You'd do better to stay away from the Bird Queen. Those who guard her have a nasty tendency to end up dead!" Shikara spat hatefully.

He didn't answer, he didn't even make a move to attack her, or defend himself.

Shikara removed her hand and back up, watching him, waiting for him to do something stupid. When he didn't move, or make a sound she back up even more and then dropped to the ground.

"Wait!" he called, leaning over the edge of the branch. "Where are you going?"

She didn't answer him. Like he actually expected her to respond to that query!

"Why won't you stay and fight?" he demanded jumping down to stand beside her, and reaching for his sword.

"I stayed my hand now stay yours!" she snapped. "Because I won't hesitate again!"

"Why didn't you kill me?" he demanded.

Shikara stared at him a longtime in the darkness before responding.

"I don't kill my own kind," she told him finally. "But get in my way again and I'll forget all feelings of nostalgia and make you regret ever meeting Sora, the Bird Queen!"

With that she leapt away, leaving him to puzzle through what she had said and did. 

~*~

"Kagome!" called Inuyasha frantically running towards Kaede's hut. He flung the door of the hut. "Kagome! Miroku! Shippou! Sango!"

"What?" grumbled Kagome rising and glaring at him. "What's the problem Inuyasha some of us are trying to sleep!"

"The Dancing Shadow! She found me when I was sleeping!" Inuyasha exclaimed.

"Are you hurt?" asked Miroku him, throwing back his own covers.

"No, she didn't attack me. Not really anyway," Inuyasha said, looking as puzzled as they felt. "She had the chance to kill me, but she didn't. She said she wouldn't kill her own kind. But that if I kept guarding Sora that she wouldn't be so kind again and that she'd kill me!"

"What could she mean her own kind?'" wondered Sango frowning.

"Doesn't she know Inuyasha's a demon?" wondered Shippou. "Couldn't she smell him?"

"Birds don't have a very good sense of smell," Sora replied quietly. "Chances are that until she got right up close she couldn't be able to smell a thing."

"So she just realized he was a demon?" Kagome asked.

"That seems highly unlikely Kagome," Myouga said, appearing out of no where to hop onto Inuyasha's leg. "The Dancing Shadow goes after humans and demons. It is her trade mark. It is what makes her so unique. That she answers to no one and has loyalties to no one and will in fact kill anyone for a price."

"Myouga," said Inuyasha slowly. "I have to ask. Where the HELL have you been?"

"Why Lord Inuyasha I went to see my mother. She's quite sick you know," Myouga said primly, crossing his arms and looking away. 

"Oh, I'm so sorry about your mother," Kagome said sorrowfully.

"Oh don't worry Kagome, my mother died years ago!" Myouga said dismissively.

"Hey wait!" protested Miroku. "I thought you said she was sick!"

"Well she was," Myouga replied. "That's why she died!"

There was a satisfying thwack as Myouga was ground into the floor boards of the hut. 

"Ow!" he moaned. "Why are you so cruel?"

"Why are you so annoying?" Inuyasha asked. "One of those questions we'll never have the answers to!"

"What I was trying to say that is the Dancing Shadow can and has killed demons before. But why no one knows!"

"Then what did she mean she won't kill one of her own kind?" Sango wondered. She turned to Sora. "Do you know what she means?"

"No," Sora said softly and slowly. "No I have no idea."

She looked into the distance and seemed to be very far away. 

"I have no idea at all!"

~*~

~Time Warp back to yesteryear~

~*~

Shikara ran to the house just as she heard a gurgling yelp get suddenly cut off. She stopped dead, frozen.

"Father!"

She screamed and burst through the door.

Too later, he father lay slumped back, a sword through the chest. The Tengo demon who stood over him slowly turned.

He dragged the sword out of her father's chest and attacked. She dodged away from him, leaping back, jumping over the table, ducking under him, sliding under the table, jumping onto a counter and then leaping over his head.

"Stop dancing and stay put!" he growled.

"Alright!"

There was a satisfying crunch as her sword lashed out like liquid metal and bit deep into his back.

He slid off it's tip, dead.

She wiped it clean on his clothes and looked around.

Everyone else her parents had killed. What was left of the house barely stood, but was awash with blood.

She set the sword on the table and hurried outside. Using her demon strength she quickly dug two graves side by side. She wrapped her parents in bed sheets and lowered them into their graves with all the solemnity and respect she could. Making a crude set of twin crosses out of fire wood and twine. She neatly stacked the bodies of the attackers and hurried back inside the house. She quickly washed all the blood she could from her skin and hair at the kitchen sink, returning to well three times. Then she ran up stairs and to change. She donned her father's black training garb and grabbed one of her mother's scarf's to hide her face and hair. She packed a quick bag of everything she would need for the immediate journey and then returned to the graves of her parents.

She knelt and prayed for this souls. Refusing to cry for them, or for herself. She wouldn't cry. Not until the bitch that had done this to them was dead! And she would have her revenge!

A sound made her look up.

Approaching hesitantly from the village and entire fleet of men, armed to the teeth came into view.

She recognized her uncle at the lead of the group, looking sick and ill.

He knew it was too late to save his brother or his brother's family, but they had come just the same, to kill their attackers before they came for the rest of the village.

Shikara rose to her feet and watched them come.

They stared at one another, they gaping at her and she returning their gazes with her own. Mentally she bid each of them she knew goodbye. Bidding her friends and the life she knew goodbye. Then she turned around and walked away.

As she walked there was a loud ripping sound as two huge snow white wings unfolding form her back. She beat them once and lifted of the ground.

She knew, in her heart of hearts, she would never, ever return. Not even to pay respect to the graves of her parents. Not until she brought the Bird Queen's head!

~*~ 

~Time Warp Ending~

~*~

Shikara's hand's clenched in fury. 

She took a deep breath and got herself under control. She forced herself to look at things clearly. Rationally.

She must be rational.

She'd let her emotions dictate her actions long enough. Now came the time to do away with the Bird Queen once and for all. There would be, no mistakes. 

~*~

"Are you sure about this?" Kagome asked Sora.

"Yes," the Bird Queen replied firmly. "Yes. I have to do this. The Dancing Shadow won't wait until she kills me, or until we kill her. So we must lead her into a trap and spring it. Killing her."

"Seems rather harsh," Shippou muttered.

Inuyasha glared at him darkly.

Shippou shrank back.

"Alright, if you really want to do this then we will," Sango decided, already dressed in her demon slayer's garb. "But what makes you so sure she'll come?"

"Come?" asked Sora, she pointed to a tree. "She's already here!"

They turned and gasped, indeed the Dancing Shadow was perched on a branch of a tree nearby, well within hearing distance, well within throwing distance.

She dropped down and drew her sword, pointing it at Sora, as the others moved in front of her.

"You have some debts to me Bird Queen. And I will collect," Shikara said dangerously. "Whether I have to kill an entire village or only you, you will die!"

"Not while I'm around!" Inuyasha snapped, cracking his knuckles.

"Always hiding behind others," Dancing Shadow scoffed. "First behind Muniya, then behind your royal guards and now behind them. When will you fight your own battles?!"

"That's enough talk!" Inuyasha growled. "I've had just about enough of you! You've got some debts of your own that I aim to make you pay for!"

He reached for the Tetsusaiga, but Sora stopped him.

"No," she said firmly. "If she want's my blood so badly, then she can come and take it!"

She spread her wings and took off, leaving them below, buffeting them with the wind stirred up by them.

With a growl and a large rip two equally huge swan wings unfolded from Dancing Shadow's back.

"She has wings?" demanded Shippou, pouting.

"Apparently." Miroku's tone was dry. "How did the queen know that though?"

~*~

Sora looked over her shoulder. Her heart leapt in fear, but she couldn't squash the triumph she felt at having been right. The Dancing Shadow *was* a bird! That explained the Bird Court attacks. But not, where she had learned them.

Sora faltered.

Could she really out fly this little assassin who wanted her blood? The Dancing Shadow was so agile on land, what could she do in the air?

Sora's eyes narrowed.

No way in hell was she going to be beaten in the sky! 

She pulled a hard right and circled around the assassin, coming up behind her. Her victory was short lived however when the Dancing Shadow lifted her wings straight up and corkscrewed in mid air, before flaring them.

She'd turned to face Sora, even though that maneuver had costed her some aerial height. Sora narrowed her eyes.

'Alright Miss Dancing Shadow,' she thought grimly. 'Let's see how you dance on the clouds!'

She shot straight up. She could hear the assassin pursue her.

Sora led the Dancing Shadow on a dangerous aerial course that lesser bird would have killed themselves on. The Dancing Shadow was indeed a good flyer, but, her skills were those of someone who had mastered the skills, but did not use them daily. She didn't quite know the nuances of air flight and compensation for wind. How to get as much speed with the least effort. Things that couldn't be taught, things that were different for every bird.

She wove in and out of clouds, Dancing Shadow following close behind at all times, despite her best efforts Sora couldn't shake her. And she was alone up here with her.

Maybe this wasn't the best place to have accepted the challenge.

She realized the Dancing Shadow hadn't left the huge cloud Sora had just flown through. She hesitated. She didn't want to fly if she didn't know where her own personal shadow assassin was, but she wasn't going back into the foggy cloud for love or money!

Her hesitation was awarded with a sharp pain in her left shoulder as a dagger came flying out of the cloud. 

As Sora grunted in pain and clutch her shoulder, the Dancing Shadow came barreling out after her, sword raised.

Sora grabbed her whip sword and slashed. It became a whip and hit the sword right out of the Dancing Shadow's hand.

Sora arched and dove after the blade that was falling towards the earth. She plastered her wings along her body, becoming perfectly streamline, reaching out to grab the assassin's weapon.

She snatched it's hilt, but before she could pull out of her dive a hand grabbed her wrist and a heavy weight landed on her back.

With the assassin's extra weight, Sora plummeted even faster.

"You'll kill us both!" she screamed furiously, trying to throw the assassin off.

"As long as your dead, that's a risk I'm willing to take," Dancing Shadow replied calmly.

Sora's eyes slid off the fast approaching ground to the sword in her hands. More precisely to the inscription on the blade.

Several things clicked into place for her at that moment.

"Kilem and Muniya raised you for more then this."

It was a long shot. An educated stab in the dark, but it had the desired effect.

Dancing Shadow kicked off her, flaring her wings. Sora managed to roll in the air, her huge wings slowly her momentum and finally stopping her, far too close to the ground for her comfort.

The Dancing Shadow and a dagger in each hand now, and Sora knew it was time to talk fast, unless she wanted to look and feel like a pincushion.

"How did you know?" Dancing Shadow coldly.

Sora smiled in relief.

"I didn't," she replied cheerfully. "Until now!"

Dancing Shadow threw a dagger at her, which Sora was barely able to deflect in time, with a squeal as it went spinning off and fell aside. As if she had never thrown the dagger, the Dancing Shadow had another in hand.

"You said you wouldn't kill you own kind. But then, you kill demons and humans," Sora said, getting hold of herself. "The only thing that made sense was that you were neither. Or, both. You're a hanyou!" 

"Yes."

The calm, it's-okay-that-you-know-because-you're-about-to-die, response really wasn't what Sora had been aiming for, but, oh well! It was a start.

"The daughter of a great bird warrior and a samurai," Sora continued. "Tales of Kilem's greatness reached us even at the Bird Court."

"And you're the one who gave the order to kill him. How special you must feel!" the assassin replied sarcastically.

"I never gave that order!" Sora replied looking away. Her fists tightened around the two swords she held at the painful memory. "Believe me, I never would have given the order to kill Muniya. She was my best friend!"

"And she gave birth to a hanyou, choosing humans over you!" spat the Dancing Shadow.

"That did sting a bit yes," Sora admitted. "But after I cooled down, I realized that I wanted her side of the story. That's why I sent my men out."

"You just said you didn't give the order!" Dancing Shadow cried, lobbing another dagger at her. This one missed Sora's body, but nicked a wing.

"I gave the order for my men to go to the village, to take Muniya and you away. The human was to be left behind," Sora said desperately. "You were her daughter and I would have forgiven you for that! I knew that if I got her away from him, and whatever spell he had on her, she'd come to her senses!"

The Dancing Shadow shot at Sora, grabbing her by the neck so hard that Sora's breath lodged in her throat.

"There were no spells. No deceit. No lies. They loved each other and me!" she grated. "And you destroyed that!"

"No!" Sora protested. "I gave the order to bring you and her yes! But my men never arrived! They were killed en route and their flags, and uniforms were stolen. My men never made it to your doorway. Only my crest. Those butchers were no men of mine!"

"Then who gave the order?" the assassin demanded, tightening her grip.

"When I find out who went behind my back and challenged my authority, you can have them when I finish with them!" Sora told her between clenched teeth, her eyes flashing in anger.

"Why should I believe you? Why should I think that you're not lying just to save yourself?" hissed the assassin. Sora felt a dagger press against her abdomen, just above the navel.

"I'm a scholar. Even among birds," Sora gasped. "I study things. I don't kill them!"

The Dancing Shadow slipped the dagger away and then grabbed the hilt of Muniya's sword. Sora let it go without a fight. She'd given the sword to Muniya, but she knew the great warrior would want her daughter to have it.

"You're name, what's your name?" asked Sora.

"Shikara!"

The Dancing Shadow kicked her back. Sora went tumbling through the air a few times before she got herself steady in the air.

When a distant, but familiar and angry squawk cut through the air, Sora almost laughed. They turned to watch as the Wonder Bird, still angry came barreling towards them.

When she turned back to advise the Dancing Shadow to run, the assassin was already gone.

She frowned, then turned around and fly straight down as she was pursed by the huge bird, who's talons were reaching for her already.

~*~

Shikara plastered her wings along her body and dropped like a stone. Sharp tree branches bit deep into her arms as she crashed into the trees. The branches slowed her fall, as she broke through the branch cover, she flared her wings and slowed her fall even more so that when she landed she folded up into a deep crouch, wings spread beside her.

"Idiot queen."

Shikara watched from the safety of the trees below as the Bird Queen flew on a gradual downward angle, with the Wonder Bird closing fast ,with it's built up momentum. Sora would have to fly pretty fast to work up enough speed not to get into a tangle with the giant bird.

"She should have just folded her wings and plummeted like a sensible person," Shikara said to herself, rising and rolling her shoulders as she retracted her wings into her back. "If she wants to avoid the pain of crashing through trees, she shouldn't make enemies!"

She began to walk away. Shikara fingered the hilt of her mother's sword, thinking.

One Tengo. Out of a dozen or so demons sent to her family's house that day, one had been Tengo. The others were random forest demons. None looked like the sort of men that a flighty little queen child like Sora would have hired.

Shikara once thought that was because they were only hired to be executioners, but that seemed at odds with Sora's personality. Her eyes narrowed. The Bird Queen it seemed was playing games.

No matter. Shikara would play. Better yet she'd win. Four years she'd been waiting for her revenge and she would be damned if she let the Bird Queen live, just because she'd shown real anger and remorse. Maybe, after all these years she was regretting her betrayal. Or more likely. She regretted that she'd angered the Dancing Shadow! 

Stay tuned for the next instalment of the Shikon Wars. In which we actually get to see Sora work her wacky mamma jamma magic of spinning flesh from blood and a soul! Yeah! 

Review!.... 

Please!.... 

I need reassurance!.... 

I have low self-esteem!... 

When you don't review I cry!.... 

Review!..... 

Please!...... 

Oh god why won't you review!..... 

It's because I'm still talking about it isn't it?.....

Damn you!....

Why won't you review?.....

Okay, I'm stopping this insane rant..... 

Right.....

About...

Now!!!....

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



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